When to Seek Medical Help

GET EMERGENCY CARE if you notice any of the following with your baby:

• Vomit that is green or bloody
• Dusky or blue skin or lips
• Floppiness or extreme difficulty waking the baby
• Poisoning or suspected poisoning — call the Poison Control Center first (1-800-222-1222)
• Trouble breathing or chest sinking in with breathing

Signs of infection or illness

• Listlessness or excessive sleepiness, or an overall change in activity or temperament.
• Unstable or abnormal temperature. A baby’s normal temperature (armpit) is from 97.7° F (36.5° C) to 99.5° F (37.5° C).
• Excessive irritability (has a high-pitched cry or can not be comforted).
• Vomiting more than occasionally.
• Poor eating (for example, refusal to eat at all, or consistently sleeping five to six hours between feedings).
• Reddened or firm skin around the umbilical site — or skin that has pus or a foul smell.
• Thrush — white or grayish-white, slightly raised patches that look like curds of milk on the tongue, lips, or throat.
• Breathing faster than 60 breaths per minute.
• Wheezing or coughing.
• Redness, swelling, tenderness, pus, or bleeding at the circumcision site.

Skin

• Jaundice (a yellow appearance) that does not go away, or spreads to cover more of the body.
• A rash that concerns you.
• Mottled and pale skin — and a temperature that’s higher or lower than normal.
• Cradle cap (scaly skin on the scalp).
• Severe or persistent diaper rash.

Bowel movements and urination

Pay attention to the number of wet and messy diapers your newborn makes. Too few may signal a problem. Call your baby’s doctor if you notice any of the following:

• On the first day of life, your baby doesn’t have at least one wet diaper and one messy diaper in a 24-hour period.
• On the second day of life, your baby has fewer than two wet diapers and two messy diapers in a 24-hour period.
• On the third day of life, your baby has fewer than three wet diapers and three messy diapers in a 24-hour period.
• On the fourth day of life:
• Your breastfed baby has fewer than four wet diapers and four mustard-yellow stools (“poops”) in a 24-hour period.
• Your formula-fed baby has fewer than four wet diapers and has no messy diapers in a 24-hour period.
• After the sixth day of life:
• Your breastfed baby has fewer than six wet diapers and four mustard-yellow stools (“poops”) in a 24-hour period.
• Your formula-fed baby has fewer than six wet diapers and has no messy diapers in a 24-hour period.
• Sudden changes in bowel movements combined with irritability, poor eating, or other concerns
• Diarrhea, or stool that’s watery, green, foul-smelling, or contains mucus or blood
• For circumcised boys:
• Increased redness, swelling, and tenderness
• Development of pus-filled blisters
• Bleeding — apply pressure and call your baby’s doctor right away
• Signs of discomfort with urination
• Failure to urinate within six to eight hours after a circumcision