Jaundice management may involve treating infectious causes and stopping medication that could be contributing. Among newborns, depending on age and prematurity, a bilirubin greater than 4–21 mg/dL (68-360 µmol/L) may be treated with phototherapy or exchanged transfusion. The itchiness may be helped by draining the gallbladder or ursodeoxycholic acid. The word "jaundice" is from the French "jaunisse", meaning "yellow disease". The main sign of jaundice is a yellowish discoloration of the white area of the eye and the skin. Urine is dark in colour. Slight increases in serum bilirubin are best detected by examining the sclerae, which have a particular affinity
Jaundice the sclera of the eyes; its more common and more correct meaning is entirely synonymous with jaundice, however. Hyperbilirubinemia, more precisely hyperbilirubinemia due to the unconjugated fraction, may cause bilirubin to accumulate in the gray matter of the central nervous system, potentially causing irreversible neurological damage leading to a condition known as kernicterus. Depending on the level of exposure, the effects range from clinically unnoticeable to severe brain damage and even death. Newborns are especially vulnerable to hyperbilirubinemia-induced neurological damage and therefore must be carefully monitored for alterations in their serum bilirubin levels. When a pathological process interferes with the