What Does a High Bilirubin Level Mean?
Unconjugated (indirect) bilirubin levels may be higher if your body is destroying red blood cells more quickly than your liver can process them. This may suggest:
- a hemolytic illness. [5]
- Crohn’s disease. [6]
- adverse blood transfusion response.
Unconjugated bilirubinemia is frequently caused in infants by:
- premature birth
- incompatibility between the baby’s and the birth parent’s blood types.
- responses to substance in breast milk.
If your body is having problems eliminating conjugated bilirubin (direct), you may have higher levels of it. This could be a sign of a gallstone or biliary condition, such as:
- Gallstones
- Cholecystitis. [7]
- Cholangitis [8]
High levels of both types will accumulate in your body if you have ailments that impair your liver’s capacity to process bilirubin.