<s>[INST] What causes jaundice in babies to be prolonged? [/INST] Jaundice is considered prolonged if persists for longer than 14 days in a term baby and 21 days in a preterm baby. Common causes are:

Breast milk jaundice – Babies on exclusive breast feeding may have prolonged jaundice. As long as the mothers are not taking traditional herbs, the jaundice will be harmless to the babies.
Urinary tract infection.
Obstruction of bile flow from the liver into the intestine. This rare condition will result in pale coloured stools and dark or tea coloured urine.
Congenital hypothyroidism – This condition occurs in 1 per 4000 babies. Currently the national screening programme of newborn cord blood for congenital hypothyroidism is an ongoing programme in all government hospitals and clinics. Source: MyHEALTH Malaysia. Link: http://www.myhealth.gov.my/en/neonatal-jaundice/. Field: Hepatology . Disease: Jaundice </s>