Jaundice is a condition produced when excess amounts of bilirubin
circulating in the blood stream dissolve in the subcutaneous fat
(the layer of fat just beneath the skin), causing a yellowish
appearance of the skin and the whites of the eyes. With
the exception of normal newborn jaundice in the first week of life,
all other jaundice indicates overload or damage to the liver, or
inability to move bilirubin from the liver through the biliary
tract to the gut.
Review Date: 01/29/2010
Reviewed By: Neil K. Kaneshiro, MD, MHA, Clinical Assistant Professor of
Pediatrics, University of Washington School of Medicine. Also
reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.
A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org)
