Jaundice causes your skin and the whites of your eyes to turn yellow. Too much bilirubin causes jaundice. Bilirubin is a yellow chemical in haemoglobin, the substance that carries oxygen in your red blood cells. As red blood cells break down, your body builds new cells to replace them. The old ones are processed by the liver. If the liver cannot handle the blood cells as they break down, bilirubin builds up in the body and your skin may look yellow.
Causes
- side effects of certain medications
- gallstone disease
- excessive alcohol consumption
- gallbladder or pancreatic cancer
- cirrhosis, which is a disease that causes scar tissue to replace healthy tissue in the liver
- hepatitis or other liver infections
- hemolytic anaemia
Symptoms
- Common symptoms of jaundice :
- a yellow tinge to the skin, mucous membranes, and the whites of the eyes
- pale stools
- dark urine
- itchiness
- Accompanying symptoms of jaundice may include:
- fatigue
- abdominal pain
- weight loss
- vomiting
- fever