Treatment of physiological and pathological neonatal jaundice.

Neonatal jaundice (hyperbilirubinaemia) is a common condition and usually a benign transitional event that resolves without treatment. However, in some infants it can be a symptom of an underlying pathological condition, which is important to identify. If bilirubin levels necessitate it, treatment for jaundice involves phototherapy and/or exchange transfusion of donor blood. In cases of pathological jaundice the underlying cause must also be treated. Parental involvement is important to minimise the trauma of having a sick baby and its effect on bonding.