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Haem is converted into unconjugated bilirubin then conjugated bilirubin. Conjugated bilirubin is then secreted along with bile into the intestine and is either excreted in faeces as urobilinogen or reabsorbed into blood and transported back to the liver. The varied causes of hyperbilirubinemia are best understood from bilirubin metabolism.
Jaundice, also known as icterus, is a yellowish or greenish pigmentation of the skin and sclera due to high bilirubin levels. [3] [6] Jaundice in adults is typically a sign indicating the presence of underlying diseases involving abnormal heme metabolism, liver dysfunction, or biliary-tract obstruction. [7]
Cancer. According to the CDC, cancer is the No. 2 leading cause of death in older Americans, behind only heart disease. SeniorCaring.org reports that the cancers most likely to affect people over ...
Kernicterus is a bilirubin-induced brain dysfunction. [1] The term was coined in 1904 by Christian Georg Schmorl.Bilirubin is a naturally occurring substance in the body of humans and many other animals, but it is neurotoxic when its concentration in the blood is too high, a condition known as hyperbilirubinemia.
Hereditary hyperbilirubinemia refers to a group of conditions where levels of bilirubin, a byproduct of red blood cell metabolism, are elevated in the blood due to a genetic cause. [1] Various mutations of enzymes in the liver cells, which breakdown bilirubin, cause varying elevated levels of bilirubin in the blood. [2]
Treatment of the condition is specific to the cause of hemolysis, but intense phototherapy and exchange transfusion can be used to help the patient excrete accumulated bilirubin. [11] Complications related to hemolytic jaundice include hyperbilirubinemia and chronic bilirubin encephalopathy, which may be deadly without proper treatment. [12] [13]
Bilirubin is not normally detectable in the urine of healthy people. If the blood level of conjugated bilirubin becomes elevated, e.g. due to liver disease, excess conjugated bilirubin is excreted in the urine, indicating a pathological process. [60] Unconjugated bilirubin is not water-soluble and so is not excreted in the urine.
Cholestasis can be excluded by normal levels of bile acids in plasma, the absence of lactate dehydrogenase, low levels of conjugated bilirubin, and ultrasound scan of the bile ducts. [citation needed] Vitamin B12 deficiency - elevated bilirubin levels (and MCV counts above 90–92) can be associated with a vitamin B12 deficiency. [citation needed]