This father took a picture with his daughter; he had no idea that her life was in ᴅᴀɴɢᴇʀ and that this very picture probably saved her.
For new parents, everything related to a newborn baby is new. So sometimes we can miss something undoubtedly important, and only someone more experienced can help.
The father uploaded the photo on social media, and the image received a lot of attention. Thousands of people found the photo cute and commented with funny remarks like, “She’s going to be a rebel and marry a poor guy with no tattoos.”
But it was a comment, from a paediatrician, that got Dad’s full attention: “Are the eyes a little yellow? It looks like this to me, but it’s hard to tell because the whole picture is a bit yellow. It’s probably nothing, but it could be a symptom of ᴊᴀᴜɴᴅɪᴄᴇ. If her skin and eyes actually look a little yellow, then maybe you should get it checked out. I’m a paediatrician, hence my concern.”
The father listened to the stranger’s concerns and took his daughter to the doctor. There, it was confirmed that his concerns were correct: the little girl had ᴊᴀᴜɴᴅɪᴄᴇ, and, in the ᴡᴏʀsᴛ-ᴄᴀsᴇ sᴄᴇɴᴀʀɪᴏ, this attentive pediatrician may have saved the little girl’s life.
The vast majority of children with ᴊᴀᴜɴᴅɪᴄᴇ are diagnosed quickly because their skin is either yellow or very red. If severe ᴊᴀᴜɴᴅɪᴄᴇ is not detected, the condition can lead to a form of ʙʀᴀɪɴ ᴅᴀᴍᴀɢᴇ. Over 100,000 ᴅɪᴇ worldwide, according to NTNU.
According to Forskning.no, it is especially Bavarians who are born prematurely who are exposed to ᴊᴀᴜɴᴅɪᴄᴇ. Every fourth child admitted to the ɴᴇᴏɴᴀᴛᴀʟ ɪɴᴛᴇɴsɪᴠᴇ ᴄᴀʀᴇ ᴜɴɪᴛ receives ᴛʀᴇᴀᴛᴍᴇɴᴛ for ᴊᴀᴜɴᴅɪᴄᴇ.
In Norway, the ᴄᴏɴᴅɪᴛɪᴏɴ is usually detected quickly, and it is therefore very rare for children to suffer sᴇʀɪᴏᴜs ᴅᴀᴍᴀɢᴇ from ᴊᴀᴜɴᴅɪᴄᴇ in this country.
“In the USA, it is suspected that the number of ʙʀᴀɪɴ ɪɴᴊᴜʀɪᴇs as a result of ᴊᴀᴜɴᴅɪᴄᴇ has increased in recent years. It is because mother and child are also sent home from the hospital after a short time,” says Lise Lyngsnes Randeberg, professor of biomedical optics at NTNU.
Amazing that this doctor was attentive, and that the father reacted immediately!
