The Yellow Baby Flashcards
What are the LFTs?
Bilirubin - total/split
ALT/AST ratio
Alkaline phosphatase
GGT
What is ALT/AST ratio a marker of?
Hepatic damage
>2 in alcoholic liver disease
What is alkaline phosphatase a marker of?
Raised in biliary disease but also raised in pregnancy and diseases where there is increase osteoblast activity
What is GGT a marker of?
Biliary disease but also alcoholic liver disease
To actually assess liver function what tests are better?
Coagulation - PT/INR/APTT
Albumin
Bilirubin
Blood glucose & ammonia sometimes
What does PT measure?
Vit K dependent clotting factors - 1, 2, 5, 7, 10
What does APTT measure?
Other clotting factors
What does high albumin suggest?
Dehyration
What does low albumin suggest?
Protein loss or liver dysfunction
How can liver disease manifest in children?
Signs/symptoms
Jaundice
Incidental abnormal blood test
What are the signs and symptoms of liver disease?
Oestrogen related ones: spider naevi, liver palms etc.
Portal HTN, varices, splenomegaly, hypersplenism, ascites
Ammonia related encephalopathy
Hepatorenal failure
Malabsorption, rickets
Clotting factor related ones: petechiae/bruising/epistaxis
Peripheral neuropathy, hypotonia
Define jaundice
Yellow discolouration of skin and other tissues due to accumulation of bilirubin
At what total bilirubin level does jaundice usually become visible
> 40-50umol/l
Where is jaundice most visible?
Sclera
Describe the bilirubin metabolism pathway
Post-mature erythrocytes broken down by RES into haem
Haem broken down into biliverdin
Biliverdin broken down into unconjugated bilirubin by biliverdin reductase
UC bilirubin travels to liver attached to albumin
Liver conjugates bilirubin with UDP glucuronyl transferase
Conjugated bilirubin transformed into bile and then urobilinogen in the small intestine
Can be reuptaken by enterohepatic circulation or excreted by kidneys/gut
In gut becomes stercobilin (responsible for colour of shit)
How is neonatal jaundice classified?
Age
Early (<24h) - always pathological
Immediate (24h-2wks)
Prolonged (>2wk)
What are the causes for early jaundice?
Sepsis, haemolysis
What are the causes for immediate jaundice?
Sepsis, haemolysis, physiological jaundice, breast milk jaundice