Types of jaundice

There are three types of jaundice, depending on

what's affecting the movement of bilirubin out of the
body.
Pre-hepatic jaundice
Pre-hepatic jaundice occurs when a condition or
infection speeds up the breakdown of red blood
cells. This causes bilirubin levels in the blood to
increase, triggering jaundice.
Causes of pre-hepatic jaundice include:
malaria a blood-borne infection spread by mosquitoes
sickle cell anaemia an inherited blood disorder where the red blood
cells develop abnormally; it's most common among black Caribbean, black
African and black British people
thalassaemia similar to sickle cell; it's most common in people of
Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and, in particular, South Asian descent
Crigler-Najjar syndrome a genetic syndrome where an enzyme needed
to help move bilirubin out of the blood and into the liver is missing
hereditary spherocytosis a genetic condition that causes red blood
cells to have a much shorter life span than normal

Intra-hepatic jaundice
Intra-hepatic jaundice happens when a problem in
the liver for example, damage due to infection or
alcohol, disrupts the livers ability to process
bilirubin.
Causes of intra-hepatic jaundice include:
the viral hepatitis group of infections hepatitis A, hepatitis
B and hepatitis C

 alcoholic liver disease where the liver is damaged as a result

of drinking too much alcohol
leptospirosis a bacterial infection that's spread by animals, particularly
rats
glandular fever a viral infection caused by the Epstein-Barr virus
drug misuse leading causes are ecstasy and overdoses of paracetamol
primary biliary cirrhosis a rare condition that causes progressive liver
damage
Gilbert's syndrome a common genetic syndrome where the liver has
problems breaking down bilirubin at a normal rate
liver cancer a rare and usually incurable cancer that develops inside the
liver
exposure to substances known to be harmful to the liver such as
phenol (used in the manufacture of plastic) or carbon tetrachloride (widely
used in the past in processes such as refrigeration, although now its use is
strictly controlled)
autoimmune hepatitis a rare condition where the immune system starts
to attack the liver
primary sclerosing cholangitis a rare type of liver disease that causes
long-lasting (chronic) inflammation of the liver
Dubin-Johnson syndrome a rare genetic syndrome where the liver is
unable to move bilirubin out of the liver

Post-hepatic jaundice
Post-hepatic jaundice is triggered when the bile
duct system is damaged, inflamed or obstructed,
which results in the gallbladder being unable to
move bile into the digestive system.
Causes of post-hepatic jaundice include:

gallstones obstructing the bile duct system

pancreatic cancer
gallbladder cancer or bile duct cancer
pancreatitis inflammation of the pancreas, which can either be acute
pancreatitis (lasting for a few days) or chronic pancreatitis (lasting for many
years)

Some causes of jaundice are common, such as

hepatitis and gallstones, whereas other causes,
such as Crigler-Najjar syndrome and DubinJohnson syndrome, are much rarer