Kernicterus
You don't need to be Editor-In-Chief to add or edit content to WikiDoc. You can begin to add to or edit text on this WikiDoc page by clicking on the edit button at the top of this page. Next enter or edit the information that you would like to appear here. Once you are done editing, scroll down and click the Save page button at the bottom of the page.
| Kernicterus Classification and external resources | |
 | |
|---|---|
| Bilirubin | |
| ICD-10 | P57. |
| ICD-9 | 773.4, 774.7 |
| DiseasesDB | 7161 |
| MedlinePlus | 003243 |
| eMedicine | ped/1247 |
| MeSH | D007647 |
|
WikiDoc Resources for Kernicterus | |
|
Articles | |
|---|---|
|
Most recent articles on Kernicterus Most cited articles on Kernicterus | |
|
Media | |
|
Powerpoint slides on Kernicterus | |
|
Evidence Based Medicine | |
|
Clinical Trials | |
|
Ongoing Trials on Kernicterus at Clinical Trials.gov Clinical Trials on Kernicterus at Google
| |
|
Guidelines / Policies / Govt | |
|
US National Guidelines Clearinghouse on Kernicterus
| |
|
Books | |
|
News | |
|
Commentary | |
|
Definitions | |
|
Patient Resources / Community | |
|
Patient resources on Kernicterus Discussion groups on Kernicterus Patient Handouts on Kernicterus Directions to Hospitals Treating Kernicterus Risk calculators and risk factors for Kernicterus
| |
|
Healthcare Provider Resources | |
|
Causes & Risk Factors for Kernicterus | |
|
Continuing Medical Education (CME) | |
|
International | |
|
| |
|
Business | |
|
Experimental / Informatics | |
Please Take Over This Page and Apply to be Editor-In-Chief for this topic: There can be one or more than one Editor-In-Chief. You may also apply to be an Associate Editor-In-Chief of one of the subtopics below. Please mail us [1] to indicate your interest in serving either as an Editor-In-Chief of the entire topic or as an Associate Editor-In-Chief for a subtopic. Please be sure to attach your CV and or biographical sketch.
Overview
Kernicterus is damage to the brain centers of infants caused by increased levels of unconjugated-indirect bilirubin which is free (not bound to albumin). This may be due to several underlying pathologic processes. Newborn babies are often polycythemic, meaning they have too many red blood cells. When they break down the cells, one of the byproducts is bilirubin, which circulates in the blood and causes jaundice. Alternately, Rh incompatibility between mother and fetus may cause hemolysis of fetal red blood cells, thereby releasing unconjugated bilirubin into the fetal blood. Since the fetal blood brain barrier is not fully formed, some of this released bilirubin enters the brain and interferes with normal neuronal development. Kernicterus may also be found in infants as a symptom of Crigler-Najjar syndrome type I, a hereditary hyperbilirubinemia that is fatal within 18 months of life.
In adults and older children, jaundice is harmless in and of itself. However, the tissues protecting the brain (the blood-brain barrier) are immature in newborns. Bilirubin penetrates the brain and is deposited in the basal ganglia, causing irreversible damage. Depending on the level of exposure, the effects range from unnoticeable to severe brain damage.
Some medications, such as the antibiotic co-trimoxazole (a combination of trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole) may induce this disorder in the baby, either when taken by the mother or given directly to the baby, due to displacement of bilirubin from binding sites on serum albumin. The bilirubin is then free to pass into the Central Nervous System, because the baby's blood-brain barrier is not fully developed.
The word origantes from the German kern, nucleus, kernel, and the Greek ikterus, jaundice.[1]
References
- ↑ Anja M. Hafkamp (2006). Oral treatment of unconjugated hyperbilirubinemia (PDF). PhD thesis p. 21. Department of Pediatrics; Center for Liver, Digestive and Metabolic Diseases; University Medical Center Groningen. Retrieved on 2008-09-06.
External links
- BiliTool - Hyperbilirubinemia Risk Assessment for Newborns
- CDC’s National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities
- PICK - Parents of Infants and Children with Kernicterus
External links
- CDC’s National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities
- PICK - Parents of Infants and Children with Kernicterus
Acknowledgement and Attribution Regarding Sources of Content
Some of the initial content on this page may be incorporated in part from copyleft sources in the public domain including wikis such as Wikipedia and AskDrWiki. Drug information for patients came from the The National Library of Medicine. Infectious disease information may have come from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Differential Diagnoses are drawn from clinicians as well as an amalgamation of 3 sources: 1.The Disease Database; 2. Kahan, Scott, Smith, Ellen G. In A Page: Signs and Symptoms. Malden, Massachusetts: Blackwell Publishing, 2004:3; 3. Sailer, Christian, Wasner, Susanne. Differential Diagnosis Pocket. Hermosa Beach, CA: Borm Bruckmeir Publishing LLC, 2002:7 .
