Jaundice and Photo Therapy

We survived the weekend, things going quite well as expected. Harold (we’re calling him, on this blog, by his pre-birth name) has started eating better, gaining back some of his weight, and his jaundice is retreating.<br />n<br />nSpeaking of the jaundice, he was affected by it a bit more than his pediatrician would have liked. He’s been going into the lab at the hospital every day since Friday to get some blood tests done. On Saturday, the levels of <a href=”http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bilirubin” title=”bilirubin at wikipedia”>bilirubin</a> were high enough such that the doctor ordered us a light blanket to use on him over the next couple of days.<br />n<br />nThe light therapy helps with the breakdown of the bilirubin, which is a waste product. It was an interesting contraption. A main box had a bright lamp, very much like projectors, with fan and all, and a fiber optic cable that extended out about three feet (1 meter) to a pad where a criss cross of indigo light emanates. Here’s a picture of Harold wearing the device (click the picture for a bigger version).<br />n<br />n<a href=”https://www.jaworskihouse.com/image_files/harold/light_therapy01.jpg” ><!– s9ymdb:25 –><img width=’220′ height=’165′ style=”border: 0px; padding-left: 5px; padding-right: 5px;” src=”https://www.jaworskihouse.com/image_files/harold/light_therapy01.jpg” alt=”” /></a><br />n<br />nIt looks pretty cool at night, in the dark.<br />n<br />nWe went to the lab again this morning for another blood test, and the bilirubin levels have dropped significantly. So much so, that the doctor said we don’t need the light blanket any longer. As expected, things are moving in the right direction.