Q: What causes biliary atresia?
A. Unfortunately the cause of biliary atresia is not known. Research is being carried out but it has not yet provided any definitive answers. There are various theories attributing some viruses or autoimmune processes to cause the pathology. Biliary atresia, however is NOT a hereditary condition.

Parents frequently feel guilty that they may in some way have contributed to their child having this problem. These feelings are groundless, as at present, there is no known way of preventing or anticipating the occurrence of biliary atresia.

Q: What are the signs of biliary atresia?
A. In the first few weeks of life, babies with biliary atresia often seen well, apart from being jaundiced (yellowing of the skin and whites of the eyes)

Jaundice in newborn babies is very common and mostly it clears within the first 2 weeks of life. This is caused due to the change over of the newborn baby's blood (hemoglobin) to the variety that is present in adults. However, if the cause of the jaundice is due to a Liver Disease, then, frequently the jaundice does not fade.

Other important signs are:

 Yellow Coloured urine