The adequate presentation of the subject of jaundice would require a book rather than a short article. I will therefore not attempt, even in outline, to cover the whole subject. Rather as a practical clinician addressing fellow clinicians I will limit myself to one type of jaundice. It is the type in which prompt diagnosis and correct treatment are of the greatest importance. It is also the group in which mistakes are most commonly made. I refer to the jaundice of adults coming on without pain or with relatively little pain. This includes about one third of all cases of jaundice.
Why is painless jaundice in adults particularly important? Because it is vital that as soon as possible the essential decision should be made whether the patient is suffering from a surgical or a medical disease. The decision as to which particular variety of surgical or medical jaundice is of