my week old babies billirubin result was a 5.3 is that to high did your baby need light therapy?

Question

Do you think this is to high and he might need light therpy? Doc claims if it was a 20 or higher he would be worried that seems way to high. I hear 13 is even considered very high. So which is it?
I am worried cause my 1st borns was a 13 but they said he needed no treatment.

Answer 1

I was always told the cutoff for aggressive treatment was 20. But some doctors choose to play it safe and treat with the bili-lights for lower levels, just to get the baby's body on its way to processing all of that bilirubin more efficiently, a little earlier than it might otherwise do on its own.

All six of my babies had mild jaundice (none over a 10), and we never once did a light treatment or anything other than breastfeed as much as possible. Clearing out the meconium is the best natural method of getting rid of jaundice, and breastmilk is a natural laxative to the baby's digestive system.

If you're not breastfeeding and don't intend to give it a try at this point, you're probably still making some amount of milk. You can express or pump some and feed it to try and stimulate those bowel movements.

Answer 2

Your baby's result is just fine. My baby's bilirubin level was over 14 and she did not require Photo therapy. And your doctor is right, anything under 20 is not harmful to your child. My doctor told me to just put her in the light/sun by the window ( only wearing a diaper ) for 10 minutes 3 times a day.

Answer 3

Your baby's billirubin is fine. In the mid to high teens is high and may require light therapy. One of my babies had 14 and did not require therapy. It went down on its own.

Answer 4

i dont think that is considered to high. my son had 16 and had to go under lights and when they checked it agagin it was 11 and they said that was ok, no light therapy needed. best bet is to talk to your dr. but since you know your childs results, so does the dr, so if he was concerned he would call you.