Which sign indicates jaundice in a patient with liver disease?

Which sign indicates jaundice in a patient with liver disease?

• A. Yellowing of the sclera
• B. Dark brown urine
• C. Clay-colored stool
• D. Bluish mucous membranes

Answer: (A)

Jaundice occurs when bilirubin builds up in the blood and tissues, giving a yellow tint to exposed areas. The sclera of the eyes are highly sensitive to bilirubin, so yellowing of the sclera (scleral icterus) is the most recognizable and earliest sign of jaundice in liver disease. Dark brown urine can occur because bilirubin or its metabolites are excreted in urine, and clay-colored stool happens when bile pigments don’t reach the intestine due to bile flow disruption; neither is the hallmark sign of jaundice itself. Bluish mucous membranes point to other issues like cyanosis, not jaundice.

Jaundice occurs when bilirubin builds up in the blood and tissues, giving a yellow tint to exposed areas. The sclera of the eyes are highly sensitive to bilirubin, so yellowing of the sclera (scleral icterus) is the most recognizable and earliest sign of jaundice in liver disease.

Dark brown urine can occur because bilirubin or its metabolites are excreted in urine, and clay-colored stool happens when bile pigments don’t reach the intestine due to bile flow disruption; neither is the hallmark sign of jaundice itself. Bluish mucous membranes point to other issues like cyanosis, not jaundice.