What is a kernicterus?
Kernikterus is an increased accumulation of bilirubin in the brain, which can occur in newborns. Various causes and developmental mechanisms play a role here. Icterus refers to jaundice, which can occur in newborns but also in adults due to increased bilirubin levels, especially in the eyes and skin.
Bilirubin is a breakdown product of hemoglobin, which can circulate more freely in the blood due to disorders of the blood cells or metabolic processes in the liver. If there is a rapid increase in bilirubin in newborns, it can cross the blood–brain barrier and cause severe damage to the brain. In the worst case, this brain disease, known as “encephalopathy”, can even lead to death.
Causes of a nuclear icterus
An icterus can have numerous causes and can be due to disorders of the blood cells as well as diseases of the liver or bile ducts. In the case of nuclear icterus, however, the special feature is that jaundice is mainly caused by disorders of the blood cells, since only in this part of the circulation is the bilirubin chemically able to overcome the blood-brain barrier. In newborns, various processes can cause the red blood cells to dissolve and destroy, which results in increased release of bilirubin.
The reasons for this are: On the other hand, damage to the blood-brain barrier may also be present, whereby even normal high bilirubin levels can cause the kernicterus. This case can occur with: the newborn.
- Preterm Birth
- Food shortage
- Hypothyroidism
- Birth Traumas
- Newborn infection
- Blood group or rhesus factor incompatibility
- Liver metabolic diseases
- Taking certain medicines
- Oxygen deficiency
- Hypothermia
- Hypoglycemia
These are the symptoms I recognize a kernicterus
The neurological symptoms in a newborn baby are not as clear-cut as in an adult, so attention must be paid to certain signs in the child’s behavior. In the early stages of the nuclear icterus, the child may appear drowsy and may be conspicuous by a weakness in drinking and lack of movement. Later, the symptoms can change into increased excitability with shrill screaming and a highly tense muscle tone of the spine.
In addition, the newborn’s consciousness decreases, so that in the course of time a coma can occur with further increased muscle tone and seizures. Even in the long term, a nuclear icterus can cause severe symptoms. These include spastic paralysis of many muscles, impaired hearing, paralysis of certain eye muscles, and possibly a reduction in intelligence.
