Intestinal infectious diseases occur in children with almost the same frequency as SARS. The anatomical features of the digestive system, as well as close contact with possible carriers of infection in children's groups, make it easier for babies to become infected and get sick more often than adults. The consequences of some diseases can be very severe. Parents need to know how to recognize intestinal infections and distinguish them from other diseases. You cannot self-medicate. If you have any warning signs, you should definitely consult a doctor.
Content:
Types and forms of intestinal infections
The causative agents of infection, entering the intestines, begin to multiply, poisoning the body with toxins, which leads to the appearance of characteristic severe symptoms. Children are much more susceptible to infections than adults. This is due to the fact that their body's defenses are weaker, microbes quickly spread to various parts of the shorter intestine. In addition, the acidity of the gastric juice in a child is lower than in an adult, so the viability of pathogenic microorganisms is higher.
Most often, such diseases occur in children under the age of 3 years. Frequent intestinal infections in a child can cause him to lag behind in physical and mental development. Weakened children are especially susceptible to infection.
Ways of infection and types of pathogens
The main routes of transmission of pathogens are contact with a sick person or a virus carrier, as well as fecal-oral (through water, food, dirty hands and household items), airborne droplets (through the air, when the patient coughs) and transmission (rodents and insects spread the infection) .
Foodborne infections are distinguished into a special group, which include cholera, dysentery, salmonellosis, viral hepatitis A. Foodborne pathogens can persist for a long time in products such as eggs, butter, sour cream, cheese, and cottage cheese.
Food infections also include the so-called zooanthroponoses. These are brucellosis, foot and mouth disease, tuberculosis, anthrax. The carriers of the infection are animals. You can become infected by eating meat and milk (dairy products) of sick animals.
Microorganisms that cause diseases
The causative agents are most often bacteria. These include, for example, dysenteric bacillus, cholera vibrio, salmonella, campylobacter. If the baby is physically strong, he has a fairly strong immune system, then most of the bacteria are neutralized by saliva, gastric juice, and are suppressed by beneficial intestinal microflora.
Warning: If a child does not chew food well, eats on the go, overeats, he does not have time to secrete enough saliva that can destroy harmful bacteria. The use of alkaline mineral water reduces the effectiveness of exposure to hydrochloric acid of gastric juice. Antibiotics kill beneficial microflora, which prevents pathogenic microbes from developing.
There are so-called opportunistic bacteria (staphylococci, E. coli), which are an integral part of the natural intestinal microflora and do not harm the body. However, under adverse conditions (lack of useful lactobacilli, weakening of the immune defense), they begin to multiply intensively.
In addition to bacteria, viruses (rotaviruses, adenoviruses, enteroviruses), protozoa (amoebae, giardia), and fungi can cause diseases.
The most common infectious diseases in children are dysentery, salmonellosis, campylobacteriosis, rotavirus, staphylococcal infection. The disease develops in a single baby (sporadic infection), but often in children's institutions there are outbreaks (epidemics) of severe intestinal infectious diseases, which are often seasonal. It is noted that the peak incidence of dysentery falls on the summer-autumn season, and rotavirus infection - in the winter.
Flow forms
Intestinal infection in children can develop in mild, moderate and severe form. Depending on how pronounced the symptoms are, the course of the disease can be typical and atypical (with erased symptoms).
Pathogens can affect the digestive tract not completely, but only some of its departments. Depending on which part of the gastrointestinal tract the infection develops, the following types of diseases are distinguished:
- gastritis (inflammation of the stomach lining);
- duodenitis (inflammation of the duodenum);
- enteritis (damage to the small intestine);
Very often there are mixed forms of the disease, for example, gastroenteritis, gastroenterocolitis.
Phases of the course of diseases
In the development of an intestinal infectious disease, 3 phases are distinguished.
Acute phase can last up to 1.5 months.
Protracted called the phase of the disease, which does not stop after 1.5 months.
Chronic- This is the phase in which episodes of the disease recur periodically, as the infection continues to remain in the body for more than 6 months.
Video: Causes and types of intestinal infectious diseases
Causes of infection
The causes of infection are usually:
- non-observance of hygiene rules (the child eats with dirty hands, is not accustomed to washing them after visiting the toilet, playing with a pet);
- consumption of poor-quality water and food;
- employment in children's institutions (especially in the kitchen) of persons who do not have a certificate of the absence of infectious diseases (not only the intestines, but also other organs, skin);
- poor sanitary and living conditions (an abundance of flies, cockroaches - carriers of infection, dirt in the premises, poor water supply).
Viruses and bacteria enter the stomach and intestines through the mouth. Contact infection is possible when communicating with a sick person or a virus carrier. There are several sources.
Poor quality food. The use of stale dishes, expired products is very dangerous for any person, especially for a small child. Proper storage of food in the refrigerator is essential.
Warning: Uncooked foods should not be kept near raw meat or fish, where they are easily exposed to pathogens of serious infections. Only well-boiled eggs can be given to a child. It is dangerous to buy food for him on the street, in stalls and kiosks, where the rules for its preparation and storage may be violated. Acute intestinal infection in children, especially in the warm season, occurs due to the use of cream cakes, in which bacteria multiply very quickly.
Poorly purified water. The quality of raw tap water often does not meet sanitary standards. The use of low-quality water is the most common way for intestinal bacteria and viruses to enter the body. This often results in mass infection of people.
household items(dishes, toys) contain a lot of intestinal bacteria on their surface. Once in the child's mouth, they penetrate the gastrointestinal tract.
Complications of infectious diseases of the intestine
Getting into the gastrointestinal tract of children, the causative agents of intestinal infections injure the mucous membranes, which leads to their inflammation, indigestion, and the ingress of toxins into the blood. In this case, symptoms such as diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and fever occur. There is a sharp loss of fluid and salts.
Together with the liquid, potassium, sodium and calcium salts leave the body, without which the functioning of all body systems is impossible. Therefore, dehydration is the most dangerous consequence of the development of an infection in the digestive tract in a child. Indomitable vomiting and diarrhea can lead to his death within a few hours.
Dehydration causes a sharp decrease in the volume of circulating blood, clotting disorders, blood clots, pulmonary edema, kidney and heart failure.
Symptoms of individual diseases
It is important to consult a doctor in time, who, by symptoms and with the help of an examination, will be able to diagnose the presence of a specific pathogen and take all measures for effective treatment. Various intestinal diseases differ in the nature of the course and have specific manifestations.
Dysentery
The infection is localized mainly in the large intestine. Manifestations occur 1-5 days after infection. There is severe diarrhea, cramping pain in the abdomen, more on the left.
The temperature rises to 39-40°C. The child becomes weak, vomits, complains of a headache, and is delirious. The baby is shivering, convulsions, fainting may appear. Loose stools with impurities of mucus and blood occur up to 15-20 times a day. In severe dysentery, intestinal bleeding occurs.
In young children, symptoms of poisoning of the body (nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, weakness, loss of consciousness) are more pronounced than in older ones. For large children and adolescents, the phenomena of colitis are more characteristic (alternating constipation and diarrhea, bloating, pain in the intestines).
With timely treatment for 4-5 days, the patient's condition improves, by the 15th day the main symptoms disappear. Full recovery occurs in about 1 month.
salmonellosis
Bacteria infect the stomach, large and small intestines.
In a mild form, such an intestinal infection in children is accompanied by a rise in temperature to subfebrile values (37.5-38 ° C). The stool has a liquid consistency, dark greenish color, impurities of blood and mucus appear. The patient has an enlarged liver and spleen. Vomiting occurs, weakness is observed. Most often, children recover quickly after treatment. For an infant, a fatal outcome is possible due to severe poisoning of the body.
Sometimes there is a development of respiratory and typhoid-like forms, in which a runny nose, sore throat, and heart disorders (tachycardia, decreased blood pressure and pulse rate) join the symptoms of intestinal damage. In very rare cases, children of several months of life develop a septic form of the disease - the most dangerous. At the same time, severe complications develop (pneumonia, meningitis, osteomyelitis).
Rotavirus infection
After an incubation period of 1-3 days, symptoms of gastritis and enteritis develop within 1 day. The child has frequent foamy stools, vomiting, weakness caused by intoxication. The temperature rises to 38 °. These symptoms are combined with manifestations of a respiratory disease (cough, irritation of the throat, runny nose). Recovery usually occurs within 4-7 days.
Video: Treatment for rotavirus
staph infection
Manifested by severe toxicity. Fecal masses are watery, green in color, have mucus impurities. As a rule, such an intestinal disease manifests itself against the background of bacterial damage to other organs, accompanies pneumonia, purulent otitis media, tonsillitis. Recovery depends on the severity of the underlying disease.
campylobacteriosis
Transmitted to humans from sick animals through meat and dairy products (zoonotic infection). Most often, preschoolers are infected. Bacteria begin to develop in the small intestine, then spread through the lymph nodes to the rest of the departments. The incubation period is 2-3 days.
There are muscle pains, convulsions, temperature up to 40-41 ° C, diarrhea (frequent, liquid, fetid stools), nausea, vomiting. There is a sharp dehydration, exhaustion of the body, a decrease in the level of hemoglobin in the blood, an increase in the liver.
Common complications are appendicitis, gastroenterocolitis. Perhaps the appearance of foci of purulent inflammation in the heart, lungs, joints.
Video: Symptoms of various intestinal diseases
What to do with signs of bowel disease in a child
Doctors advise, without wasting precious time, to take the baby to the doctor. It is necessary to remember what he was fed recently, which product could be contaminated.
Do not try to immediately stop diarrhea and vomiting. The body must be cleansed of toxins. If the child is sick, but there is no vomiting, it should be called specifically. To speed up the elimination of toxins, you can use a cleansing enema (boiled water with a temperature of 20 ° is used).
The occurrence of dehydration can be judged by the darkening of urine, rare urination, and the absence of tears when crying.
It is necessary to immediately call an ambulance if the pain in the abdomen increases, there is continuous vomiting, so that the child cannot be drunk. The patient shows signs of severe dehydration: he has not urinated for more than 6 hours, the skin has a grayish tint, dark circles under the eyes, and the tongue is dry. There was blood in the stools.
Diagnostics
The main method for diagnosing intestinal diseases is a bacteriological analysis of feces, vomit, and blood. In this case, the type of causative agent of the infection is established.
An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) is performed to identify pathogens by the presence of antibodies.
Deciphering the coprogram obtained after an extended analysis of feces allows you to establish the localization of the infection by the color of the feces, their consistency, smell, the presence of mucus, blood, and undigested food debris.
Intestinal infection in children may be similar in symptoms to pathologies such as lactose deficiency, pancreatitis. Analyzes allow you to accurately determine the nature of the disease and determine the need for treatment.
Note: If there are no complaints about feeling unwell, but bacteria or viruses are found, then the child is their carrier, and his immune system copes with the infection, preventing the baby from getting sick. For others, it is contagious, treatment is required to neutralize the infection.
Treatment
When symptoms of an intestinal infectious disease appear in a child, first of all, the fight against dehydration of the body is carried out, a strict diet is introduced. The patient should be given water not just with water, but with special saline solutions (such as rehydron, gastrolith, humana) to make up for the loss of essential minerals.
At home, in the absence of ready-made preparations, you can give the child a solution prepared from 1 liter of water, 1 tsp. table salt, 1 tsp. baking soda and 2 tsp. Sahara. In order for the fluid to be absorbed faster, it must be heated to the patient's body temperature. In a hospital, if it is impossible to give a child a drink in the usual way, saline solution with glucose is administered intravenously.
Very often, fasting and abundant therapeutic drinking lead to a complete recovery in a few days without the use of drugs.
The basis of the diet should be liquid soups with the addition of rice and vegetables, as well as porridge from various cereals cooked in water. It is necessary to follow a diet after recovery, gradually adding fruit purees, cookies, boiled lean meat to food.
To restore the work of the intestine, enzymes, preparations with lactobacilli, bacteriophages (dysphage, coliphage, and others) are prescribed. Antipyretics are used, as well as antispasmodics for pain relief.
Treatment with antibiotics (gentamicin, kanamycin), as well as antiseptic drugs (furazolidone, nevigramon) is carried out in cases where blood is present in the feces and vomit, diarrhea does not stop for several days. Such drugs are necessarily used in the treatment of cholera, giardiasis, severe forms of other intestinal diseases.
Often, doctors prescribe enterosorbents (smecta, enterosgel, polysorb, filtrum), which can absorb toxins and accelerate the cleansing of the body from harmful substances.
Acute intestinal infection is a disease caused by microorganisms that have entered the human intestine. The causative agents of the disease are bacteria, viruses, protozoa or fungi. The source of infection is a sick person, an animal, everyday items and the environment, food, water.
Acute intestinal infections (AII) are characterized by indigestion, causing abdominal pain, diarrhea, vomiting and intoxication of the body. The disease is severe in children: the body is quickly dehydrated and has a weak immune system.
Intestinal infections are dangerous during pregnancy: dehydration and intoxication of a woman's body lead to miscarriage or provoke oxygen starvation of the fetus.
According to ICD 10, intestinal infections are in first place in the list, their codes are A00-A09. The most dangerous disease is cholera (ICD code 10 A00). This is where the list of intestinal infections begins.
Intestinal infections are characterized by rapid spread. Transmission - oral-fecal, alimentary and airborne. The infection is transmitted from person to person through unwashed hands, household items, poorly washed fruits and vegetables, and by water.
Pathogenic microorganisms are carried by insects (flies, cockroaches), sick farm animals, birds or rodents.
Pathogenic microorganisms choose the human intestine as their habitat.
Intestinal infectious diseases are similar in clinical manifestations; etiology and epidemiology are different.
Intestinal infections, a list of which can be found in the medical literature, vary depending on the type of pathogens and the effect on the body. Medical reference books, books, journals and online publications provide a list of AII with a description of the etiology, pathogenesis, clinical manifestations, methods of diagnosis and treatment.
Etiology of acute intestinal infections
Types of OKI:
Regardless of what types of microorganisms caused the disease, its symptoms are unpleasant, the treatment period is long, and the outcome is not always favorable.
Epidemiology of AII
The reasons for the emergence and spread of acute intestinal infections are that pathogenic microorganisms are quickly transmitted from a sick person or carrier of the infection.
Pathogenic microorganisms are resistant to environmental conditions, retain their harmful qualities in the cold for a long time, and remain on objects that an infected person has come into contact with.
Pathogens leave the body infected with an intestinal infection, along with feces and vomit, and are transferred to surrounding household items, water, food with the help of hands, insects, and enter water bodies with sewage. The transmission of the pathogen is “along the chain”, which leads to the emergence of an epidemic.
Classification of epidemics depending on the source of infection:
- water epidemics. Characterized by mass infection of people using a water source. With the termination of the use of water from the source or its disinfection, the epidemic subsides.
- food epidemics. As a result of eating foods that have not undergone heat treatment, or the ingress of pathogenic microorganisms.
- Household. A large number of sick children. Infections are transmitted through toys and household items.
Epidemics vary in intensity and seasonality.
Children who are unable to follow the rules of hygiene are prone to intestinal diseases.
If one child gets sick, the whole group of children is at risk.
Clinical picture of OKI
Intestinal infections are common diseases.
The clinic of all acute intestinal diseases is characterized by common manifestations:
The first symptoms of the disease appear 6-48 hours after infection.
The intestinal flu is the most common intestinal infection.
Intestinal flu affects children from six months to two years. The nature of the disease is viral, the causative agent - rotavirus - a pathogenic microorganism that has a three-layer dense shell and the shape of a "wheel".
Ways and mechanism of infection with rotavirus
Rotavirus intestinal infection is transmitted by the fecal-oral route. Trillions of bacteria leave with the feces of an infected person, while a hundred units are enough to infect others. Rotaviruses are tenacious, resistant to low temperatures and remain on those household items with which the patient or carrier of the virus has come into contact.
From these objects, they are transferred through poorly washed hands into the oral cavity of a healthy person and settle on the mucous membranes of the stomach and intestines. Through close contact, rotavirus is transmitted through the saliva of an infected person.
Rotavirus enters through unboiled water and food, poorly washed or not sufficiently heat treated.
In case of mass infection, an epidemic of rotavirus occurs. The outbreak occurs in late autumn and winter. The centers of infection are in crowded places - kindergartens, schools, nursing homes, hostels.
In order to prevent the mass spread of intestinal infections in schools, preschool institutions, collectives, and enterprises, an “Operational Action Plan for the Prevention of AII” is drawn up.
Sources of infection
Sources of infection - sick adults and children who have already shown symptoms of the disease, or virus carriers - people who have the virus in their bodies, but there are no signs of the disease.
Rotavirus with sewage enters the water supply network, reservoirs, where bathing leads to infection.
Incubation period and disease duration
The incubation period lasts up to six days.
The duration of illness with intestinal rotavirus infection is 2 weeks. The disease goes through two phases: an acute phase and a convalescent phase. The first phase lasts 7 days: the body fights the infection, the symptoms are severe. During the second phase, the body develops immunity, and a gradual recovery begins.
Symptoms
Clinical manifestations of intestinal flu are similar to SARS in the first days of the disease:
- temperature rise to 39 degrees;
- headache;
- sore throat and its redness,
- runny nose, cough, headache;
- pain in the abdomen;
- diarrhea;
- bouts of vomiting;
- lack of appetite;
- lethargy and weakness.
The absence of a high temperature distinguishes food poisoning from intestinal infections caused by pathogenic bacteria or viruses.
A dangerous manifestation in the acute phase of the disease is dehydration. The patient must be fed.
Features of the course of the disease in adults and children
Rotaviruses are invulnerable to the environment of the gastrointestinal tract and intestinal enzymes by a three-layer shell. During the course of the disease, the virus infects enterocytes - cells of the intestinal epithelium - and leads to their death, modifying the epithelium. Severe diarrhea and severe dehydration of the body occur; such is the pathogenesis of the disease.
Rotavirus in children
Intestinal infections are dangerous for children, which is associated with the characteristics of the child's body and immunity. AII is a common disease among babies from six months to two years.
Enterovirus and rotavirus infections often occur in childhood and are similar to each other. At first, parents confuse them with acute respiratory infections, as there is a jump in temperature, cough, watery eyes, runny nose. Then vomiting and diarrhea follow.
Both with enterovirus and rotavirus infections, the symptoms are high fever, diarrhea and vomiting, abdominal pain, lack of appetite, and weakness.
Unlike rotavirus, enterovirus affects, in addition to the gastrointestinal tract, the liver, heart and nervous system of the child and affects vision.
Dehydration and intoxication are manifestations of the disease. Dehydration of the body occurs so quickly that the child does not produce urine and tears. Pain disturbs the baby's sleep pattern.
Treatment consists of drinking salted water or intravenous fluids.
Breastfed babies are less prone to gastrointestinal infections due to the qualities of mother's milk.
In view of the high infant mortality due to intestinal infections, pediatrics pays special attention to the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of acute intestinal infections in children.
To date, there are manuals and scientific articles devoted to the problems of nutrition of children, methods of their safe feeding, methods of treatment and prevention of intestinal infections, and the development of the immune system.
Rotavirus in adults
Features of the manifestation of intestinal influenza in adults - that the course of the disease occurs with less pronounced symptoms. This is due to the protection of the adult organism - the acidic environment of the stomach and the content of immunoglobulin A in the secret produced by intestinal enterocytes.
The manifestation of the disease in an adult is an intestinal disorder. A person is a carrier of an infection, not suspecting that an intestinal disease is hiding behind mild symptoms.
Rotavirus in pregnant women
Rotavirus infection during pregnancy does not pose a risk to the fetus. Dehydration of a woman's body provokes oxygen starvation of the fetus. Therefore, it is important at the first signs of intestinal flu to prevent dehydration and to observe bed rest. Preventive measures and hygiene will help reduce the risk of intestinal infection.
Diagnosis of rotavirus infection
Identification of signs of the disease - by examining the patient and talking. Data on body temperature are recorded, blood pressure is measured, and the abdomen is palpated. Carry out studies of urine, feces and blood of the patient, examination of the mucous membranes of the rectum.
Differential diagnosis - for salmonellosis, cholera, dysentery, food poisoning.
Determination of the virus based on the analysis of RSK or RTGA in the first days is impossible: antibodies are produced in an adult after a few days, in a newborn - after a few months. The diagnosis is confirmed on the basis of the epidemiological situation and seasonality.
Peculiarities of care for patients with acute intestinal infections in a hospital setting
In severe cases of illness or in the absence of the possibility of isolating the patient at home, a patient with intestinal infections is placed in a hospital.
In the process of treatment, it is important to care for patients with acute intestinal infectious diseases.
Prevention of complications of intestinal infections is an integral part of nursing care on the patient's path to recovery.
Nursing interventions provide:
- isolation of the admitted patient from convalescents;
- control over regular wet cleaning with bleach in the patient's ward and ventilation of the room;
- disinfection of faeces;
- support for rehydration;
- control of diet and hygiene;
- control of body temperature, pressure, condition of mucous membranes and skin.
Care must be taken in the care of patients with severe symptoms (fever, delirium, clouding of consciousness) and children.
Intestinal infection, or as it is often called "dirty hands disease", refers to a separate subgroup of diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, which are transmitted mainly by the fecal-oral route. The most common are dysentery (pathogen - bacteria of the genus Shigela), salmonellosis (most often the pathogen is Salmonella typhimurium), escherichiosis (pathogen - Escherichia coli) and rotavirus infection.
Symptomatic picture of AII
Signs of an intestinal infection are growing very quickly. Usually the first symptoms appear within a few hours after infection. The clinical picture consists mainly of obvious signs of damage to the organs of the gastrointestinal tract and the nervous system, which are combined with a distinct dehydration of the child's body.
Common signs of AII, regardless of the type of pathogen, are vomiting, diarrhea, and severe abdominal pain. In this case, the signs of gastrointestinal disorders are determined by the location of the inflammatory process, and not, again, by the bacterium that caused the disease. In view of this, with an intestinal infection, an exacerbation of one of the diseases is possible:
Gastritis. Clinical manifestations of AII will be concentrated at the level of the stomach. That is, the main symptom of the disease will be repeated vomiting, which is accompanied by constant nausea. This condition is usually caused by staphylococcus aureus.
Enteritis. The inflammatory process affects the small intestine, therefore, the defining signs are: frequent defecation, stools while plentiful and watery, cutting pain in the intestinal area, bloating.
The nature of the bowel movements indicates the causative agent of AII:
- copious frothy discharge distinguishes infection with rotavirus;
- with salmonellosis, feces have a greenish tint;
- clear mucus is not a defining feature, as it can indicate any ailment.
- inflammation of the mucous membrane of the colon. Signs: liquid stools of small volume, blood streaks and cloudy mucus are often found, bouts of cramping abdominal pain, tenesmus (false urge to defecate, accompanied by new bouts of pain). Such symptoms are defining for dysentery.
Gastroenteritis combines the symptoms of gastritis and enteritis, that is, frequent vomiting is combined with frequent profuse liquid emptying.
With enterocolitis, there are frequent bowel movements with liquid stools that have a specific smell and impurities of blood, greenish mucus, frequent false urges to empty.
The baby has repeated vomiting, diarrhea, and mucus and blood are noticeable in the feces.
With AII, signs of a violation of the central nervous system are rapidly growing. This is due to the fact that bacteria in the course of their life produce toxins that have a negative effect on the central nervous system. Such violations include:
- high body temperature often above 39;
- weakness, severe headache, dizziness, rapid deterioration of health;
- the baby's anxiety is quickly replaced by apathy and oppression, which can even lead to loss of consciousness,
- the appearance of hallucinations and delirium, convulsions (against the background of general intoxication of the body and high temperature);
- there is a change in skin color: from unnatural pallor to the appearance of "marbling" (skin
- acquires a grayish tint, on which the capillary network is clearly visible, forming a marble pattern);
- baby's hands and feet are cold to the touch;
- increase or decrease in blood pressure;
- severe shortness of breath.
In addition, dehydration is no less dangerous for the baby. Together with vomit and feces, he loses a huge amount of fluid for him, as well as sodium and potassium, which ensure the normal functioning of the central nervous system and heart.
Important! Dehydration is extremely dangerous for young children, since it occurs almost instantly (usually within 3-5 hours), and rehydration is possible only in a hospital.
In view of this, it is necessary to note the first manifestations of dehydration:
- strong thirst;
- dryness, peeling of the skin (especially noticeable on the lips, where the skin is very delicate and begins to immediately
- "crack" at the slightest lack of moisture);
- weakness and lethargy;
- drowsiness;
- the baby rarely urinates, and the urine is very concentrated and has a rich hue.
If you do not provide timely assistance, signs of dehydration will only increase:
eyeballs sink;
- in infants, a retraction of the fontanel is noted;
- the child's facial features are sharpened;
- body weight is reduced;
- the pressure drops, the arms and legs become literally "icy", there is a rapid decrease
- body temperature;
The severity of certain signs is determined by the severity of the course of the disease. There are severe, moderate, mild (in which you can do without hospitalization).
The severity of the symptoms of the disease is determined by several main factors:
1.
type of pathogen (dysentery and escherichiosis, cholera and salmonellosis occur in an extremely severe form, as a result of which effective treatment is possible only in a hospital setting);
2.
the duration of the asymptomatic course of the disease, during which there was an active reproduction of microorganisms-causative agents of AII;
3.
the age of the baby (the disease is most severe in newborns and babies under 2 years old);
the correctness of assistance in the first hours of infection.
Causes of an intestinal infection
The causative agents of AII are ubiquitous, and therefore it is very easy to get infected with some of them. Children are especially susceptible to this kind of disease. This is due to low immunity and immaturity of the digestive tract. Even after an intestinal infection, persistent immunity is not formed, and therefore there is always a risk of re-infection.
Factors contributing to the development of AEI include:
- poor water supply with poor-quality purification of water supplied to consumers;
- poor sewerage system;
- poor sanitary and hygienic conditions, which are excellent for the development of AII pathogens;
- non-compliance with the rules of personal hygiene (washing hands before eating, washing fruits and vegetables);
- the use of water from open reservoirs without preliminary treatment (at least by boiling);
- swimming in open water bodies not intended for this;
- improper storage of food (especially in summer);
- refusal to breastfeed newborns. Subject to the rules of personal hygiene by a young mother, milk always remains sterile, and therefore cannot cause OKI in a baby;
- the lack of a balanced diet leads to the exhaustion of the child, as a result of which his immunity weakens and the baby becomes defenseless against aggressive pathogens of intestinal ailments.
Parents should remember that in summer the risk of infection with dysentery, escherichiosis and salmonellosis increases especially, but in winter you can “catch” rotavirus.
Diagnosis of the disease
Diagnostic measures to identify the causative agent of the disease in children combine several areas.
Conducting bacteriological cultures of feces and vomiting is the main diagnostic method that allows you to quickly identify and determine the cause (causative bacteria) of the disease.
To analyze the bowel movements, a scraping from the anus is taken from the baby. The biomaterial is sown on a specific nutrient medium. After 6-7 days, bacterial colonies grow and can be studied in more detail by examining under a microscope.
(analysis of feces) allows you to determine the area of damage to the gastrointestinal tract by the degree of digestion of various foods, to detect blood streaks, the nature of feces and to identify pathogens from the order of protozoa (giardia, amoeba).
TA blood test, or determination of the number of antibodies formed to a specific pathogen microorganism. The doctor, having studied the history of the baby, and taking into account the defining manifestations of the infection, indicates several possible pathogens. After that, according to the analysis, an increase in the number of antibodies to a specific AII pathogen is noted, and therefore it will be possible to make a correct diagnosis and prescribe the most effective treatment. However, this analysis in medical practice is carried out very rarely.
How to Treat an Intestinal Infection
If signs of AII are detected in a baby, you should immediately consult a doctor. The following are subject to immediate hospitalization in the infectious diseases department:
- children of any age with a severe form of the disease;
- newborns and babies up to 1 year;
- children under 2 years of age with a moderate form;
- if you suspect infection with cholera or typhoid fever;
- kids in closed institutions (sanatoriums, orphanages);
- children whose parents are food workers.
Treatment of acute intestinal infections in children combines adherence to a certain diet, etiotropic (identification of the pathogen and the appointment of appropriate drugs) and symptomatic therapy.
When carrying out etiotropic therapy, antibiotics, antibacterial drugs, specific bacteriophages (as monotherapy for the treatment of mild forms of acute intestinal infections), enterosobents (prescribed for secretory diarrhea, which is a symptom of rotavirus infection), are prescribed. Most often, the following antibiotics and chemotherapy drugs are prescribed: nevigramon, ersefuril, nifuroxazide, furazolidone, kanamycin.
To eliminate and alleviate the symptoms, oral rehydration (rehydron, gastrolith) and correction of dysbacteriosis (linex, bifidumbacterin) are performed, enzyme-containing drugs (pancreatin, creon, pangrol, mezim forte), antihistamines are prescribed (enterosgel is recommended both as a sorbent and as a drug with antiallergic action). It is also possible to symptomatically prescribe antipyretic drugs (nurofen, panadol, efferalgan) and antispasmodics to relieve pain (drotaverine, no-shpa, spasmomen).
Important! Antidiarrheal (such as imodium) and antiemetic (cerucal) drugs are not recommended for children, and if dysentery is suspected, it is completely prohibited!
Diet
It is imperative to feed a baby with AII. Food at the same time should be light and as sparing as possible. Formula-fed newborns are shown lactose-free or low-lactose mixtures.
Children after 1 year with an acute course can eat:
- vegetable puree cooked in water with the addition of vegetable oil;
- as bread - croutons;
- vegetable and rice soups;
- lean boiled meat, chopped with a blender;
- low-fat dairy products (ryazhenka, natural kefir or yogurt);
- fresh berries and fruits (melon, cranberries, watermelon), but apples should be baked in the oven or rubbed on a fine grater;
- rice or buckwheat porridge cooked only on water;
- freshly prepared fruit and / or fruit and vegetable juices, which can be slightly diluted with boiled water, but it is better not to add sugar.
To prevent dehydration, the child should be constantly fed. You need to drink slowly, in small sips: 1 sip every 5 minutes. After loose stools or vomiting, a newborn should “drink” 50 ml of liquid, but an older baby should drink 150-200 ml.
As a drink, a child can be offered a saline solution (hydrovit or rehydron, available in any pharmacy) or non-carbonated mineral water such as Borjomi. In addition, tea with lemon, but without sugar, chamomile broth, cranberry juice is suitable.
Prevention of acute intestinal infections
Prevention of intestinal infections in children is based on early teaching them to the rules of personal hygiene, which includes the mandatory washing of hands after walking on the street and visiting especially crowded places, washing fruits and vegetables. If the child is already ill with AII, he is immediately isolated in a separate room and thoroughly disinfected.
The patient is allocated separate dishes, towels and other personal items. You also need to treat the toilet bowl and children's potty with any disinfectant, not forgetting also about the places where bacteria accumulate most - door handles and switches.
All members of the patient's family, and even the child after recovery, should definitely conduct a bacteriological examination of feces to identify the causative agent of the disease.
When the first manifestations of an intestinal infection are detected in a baby, you do not need to self-medicate. You should always consult with a pediatrician, who, if necessary, will prescribe an appropriate examination and adequate treatment.
If your child has vomiting and diarrhea, it is possible that he has an intestinal infection: symptoms and treatment in children are difficult, depending on the pathogen and the reaction of the body. The two main varieties into which the disease is divided are a viral infection and a bacterial one, the treatment will be different.
Why do children get sick
The child's body does not know many of the bacteria that live everywhere: the baby is born "sterile", he has a minimum set of bacteria for the full functioning of the body.
During the first days - with mother's milk, through the air and in other ways, the baby "absorbs" a new environment - along with numerous bacteria, many of which are necessary for his life.
But unfavorable organisms live in our environment: the world around and the human body is filled with hostile viruses and microbes that cause disorders.
Microorganisms are transmitted mainly through dirty hands Unfamiliar with the aggressive impact, the child's body is unable to overcome the infection with the help of immunity, which is still poorly developed in the child: he receives immunity from mother's milk, which contains many antibodies to diseases and infections.
The causative agents of intestinal infections enter the external environment from the body of carriers - animals and people.
After leaving, they live mainly in human waste, in water bodies, soil, and other places that are possible for the transmission of a virus or bacteria by the fecal-oral route (through dirty hands, dishes, swimming in a dirty pond, etc.).
Therefore, the prevention of intestinal infections in children consists of personal hygiene and isolation of the patient.
Aleksandrova Zh. A., pediatrician, Minsk
The paradox of the treatment of intestinal infections lies primarily in the fact that a strict diet, replenishment of fluid and salt losses, plus time and patience are almost always sufficient conditions for recovery (observance of hygiene rules is implied).
Symptoms of an intestinal infection in children, the main points
Intestinal infection in children, the symptoms of its manifestation differ in two types:
- bacterial intestinal infection;
- viral intestinal infection.
The first type is less common and more severe. But an enterovirus infection in children affects the children's body most often.
Most often, the so-called "pandemics" among the people, that is, mini-epidemics of such diseases, occur in the cold winter season.
The doctor is able to determine the severity of the disease. A dangerous disease or the usual "craze" - you will find out after medical tests.
Signs of an intestinal infection in a child will alert you that the supply of microelements is small and with severe diarrhea, the clock counts. Replenish fluid loss with mineral water, or other drink that is at hand. There is a way to make sure that there is enough fluid in the body - this is to look at the color of urine - if it is light, then there is no threat of dehydration.
The causative agents of bacterial intestinal infections, depending on their type, can enter the body in different ways - some spread through water, others through vegetables, and others through meat or eggs. Remember what poor-quality product the child ate - this information will be very useful to the doctor.
A visit to the doctor is mandatory for diarrhea in children of the first year of life, and regardless of age, in the absence of a tendency to improve during the day.
Acute intestinal infection in children, the symptoms of its manifestation for clarity, we present in a table.
| bacterial | Viral |
|
|
| The rapid development of the disease, the main and first sign - highly dehydrated diarrhea that is life-threatening, as there is a rapid loss of body fluids and salts. Additionally, high fever, vomiting, nausea, abdominal pain, loss of appetite are possible. | Typical symptoms of intestinal disorders are vomiting, diarrhea, fever. One or more symptoms are present. Attacks of vomiting / diarrhea are repeated after 1-2 hours, abdominal pain. |
Diagnosis and first steps
What to look for: according to medical practice, preventive examinations are carried out, for example, before visiting a kindergarten - to detect intestinal microbes.
Sometimes a healthy person's body contains some bacteria that do not harm him. If there are no symptoms, but the child is a carrier of a certain harmful bacterium, he is not allowed to the children's team, and he undergoes a course of treatment.
Whatever the variety of intestinal infection, the incubation period in children is 1-4 days.
Let us consider in detail the diagnosis of common intestinal infections, such as roto- and norovirus.
Rotavirus intestinal infection in children is determined by the method of sampling vomit and feces for express testing - this method is the fastest and if there is equipment in the laboratory, the results will be available within an hour.
If the rapid test for this infection did not give results, the doctor uses a deeper microbiological analysis of the masses by PCR for certain microorganisms that have been infected in a particular region. It is also necessary to take blood from a vein, the analysis of which is done by the RPGA method.
Rotavirus is sometimes called because of the possible manifestations of the characteristic symptoms of influenza - cough, runny nose, red throat. These symptoms may appear before the illness, during, or after. They are not mandatory companions of the disease and may not appear at all. Do not rely on these symptoms in the definition of the disease.
Zhilina A. B., pediatrician, Moscow
There is no specific treatment for rotavirus.
The only indication is to treat symptomatically: treatment of diarrhea with rehydration, enzymes. Don't force your child to eat if he doesn't want to.
Rotavirus intestinal infection in children under one year old is a common occurrence, a baby at this age learns the world through licking objects that are unclean. After infection begins to feel bad after 3-4 hours. The temperature rises and frequent regurgitation begins. It is effective to help before the arrival of the first tests - to give water in small portions.
Norovirus intestinal infection in children has similar symptoms to rotavirus. These two diseases are diagnosed and treated in the same way.
The temperature during an intestinal infection in a child often rises, but it is not recommended to bring it down to 38 ° C. what to do at high temperature.
Treatment in the hospital and at home, 3 stages
Intestinal infection symptoms and treatment in children includes a set of measures:
- medical nutrition;
- pathogenetic and symptomatic therapy;
- etiotropic therapy.
Health food
How to feed a child with an intestinal infection is the first question mothers ask doctors. Further prognosis depends on nutrition.
Intestinal infection and symptoms in children under one year old include a number of features - breast milk and lactose mixtures are not digested, gradual dehydration occurs.
First of all, provide your child with enough clean drinking water - a couple of glasses a day.
They drink with a syringe without a needle: they draw water into the syringe, and one drop at a time, without any extra effort, the child voluntarily swallows water little by little. Make small visits of a few grams - the baby does not drink much at once.
The food will consist exclusively of a lactose-free mixture - this is a reliable option to quickly and easily cope with the disease, since the virus that causes childhood intestinal infections multiplies in a lactose-free environment.
After the third day of illness, if there is no improvement, start using mixtures with a high protein content to restore the body's strength. Intestinal infection in children under one year old is fully controlled only by a doctor.
Diet for intestinal infections in children, menu
What can a child eat with an intestinal infection after a year: any products other than dairy products that cause the fermentation process (bread, apples, grapes, etc.). The priority is light, easily digestible food with dry bifidus and lactobacilli, vitamin complexes.
About what to give a child with an intestinal infection? In the first days of the illness, it is not recommended to feed anything, perhaps the child will not have such a desire. Try safe foods - rice porridge on the water, boiled vegetables.
Diet for intestinal infections in children:
- chicken broth, chicken egg;
- boiled poultry meat;
- crackers;
- dried fruits - raisins, dried apricots, drink compotes from dried fruits;
- porridge on the water;
- boiled vegetables;
- some fruits: bananas.
The diet after an intestinal infection in a child includes sour-milk products and cereals in milk not earlier than when vomiting and diarrhea stop.
How long an intestinal infection lasts in children depends largely on the right approach. Do not stop vomiting or diarrhea with medication - this will aggravate the disease.
Usually the disease lasts 4-7 days, after which there is a complete recovery.. If there are no special orders from the doctor, help the child by supporting the functions of his body. More on that below.
Osipova G. A., pediatrician, Voronezh
After improvement, do not begin to feed the baby abundantly.
Food is given in a minimal amount - a day or two of fasting is more beneficial than any food. Permissible: low-fat cottage cheese, rice and oatmeal.
Pathogenetic and symptomatic therapy: 5 measures for the health of the baby
Various auxiliary substances that help the body cope with the disease:
- Means of oral rehydration: Regidron, Oralit, Gastrolit. After dehydration of the body, there is a sharp loss of minerals, which mineral concentrates help to restore. As a substitute for drugs, some pediatricians (for example, E. O. Komarovsky) advise giving Essentuki a high degree of salinity to children.
- Enzyme therapy: Mezim-forte, Smecta, preparations with the active ingredient "pancreatin". Enzymes similar in molecular composition to human ones help the stomach digest food, they are harmless.
- Correction: Linkas, Normobact.
- Antispasmodics: No-shpa and others, based on drotaverine.
- Vitamin therapy.
Intestinal infection in children: treatment at home is possible subject to the safety of the baby- providing his body with fluid and salts.
If for some reason replenishment of fluids at home does not occur, go to the hospital, the patient will be put on a drip.
About intestinal infection in children, pediatrician E. O. Komarovsky says that there are two safe ways to cure an intestinal infection on your own - starve and drink plenty of water. Any medicines will lead to undesirable consequences, sorbents are shown.
Note to parents: how to start treatment correctly if found in a child.
If the child has vomiting and diarrhea, but no temperature, you can find out from this article.
But what if the child has vomiting and fever, but no diarrhea? at the core of the symptoms and then engage in treatment.
How to treat intestinal infection in children? The difference between a viral intestinal infection and a bacterial one is that if the first one is practically untreatable and goes away on its own, a person only helps the body in the fight against the disease, then bacterial infection without medical treatment does not always go away.
To cure it, antibiotic therapy is used.
For viral infections, antibiotic therapy is not used - it will only further weaken the body.
Etiotropic therapy
Consists of using:
- antibiotics;
- chemotherapy drugs;
- specific bacteriophages;
- enterosorbents;
- enteral immunoglobulins;
- lactoglobulins.
Antibiotics for intestinal infections in children are prescribed with active ingredients: a quinolone derivative, nitrofuran, nifuroxazide.
Not every acute intestinal infection in children requires treatment with antibiotics and chemotherapy. You need to consult a doctor, perhaps more than one, to conduct such a course.
The disease is most severe in children, causing fever and signs of intoxication from the gastrointestinal tract. Remember that a bacterial intestinal infection in children is diagnosed in the laboratory, after a series of tests for various microorganisms.
No, even an experienced doctor will determine “by eye” the presence of a particular infection in a child.
Do not give your child strong drugs until the diagnosis is confirmed. Sometimes doctors, wanting to help, do not wait for the results of examinations, and prescribe heavy medications. This is done to save time and so that the disease does not have time to develop.
Weigh the risks well before giving your child a strong drug that has a number of side effects.
But in certain cases, urgent help is needed. You should urgently go to the medical aid department at the place of residence if you see that:
- the child suffers most from abdominal pain;
- the child cannot drink due to vomiting;
- does not walk “in a small way” for more than 6 hours;
- gray skin, sunken eyes, the child's tongue is dry;
- there is blood in the stool;
- after the cessation of diarrhea, vomiting intensified, the temperature increased, and the stomach hurts.
Take care of your little ones.
Acute intestinal disorder in a child is manifested by vomiting and loose stools, a sharp increase in temperature. Against the background of a preliminary healthy state, such a phenomenon indicates that the rotavirus has become more active. There are good ways to treat intestinal infections in children at home.
Important! The causative agents of rotavirus multiply in the digestive tract. Nausea sets in, followed by vomiting. In infants, the virus manifests itself with fever. At the same time, the stomach hurts, there is a general state of lethargy, severe weakness, and there is no appetite.
What is important to know about rotavirus infection
Especially dangerous is the development of such an infection in children who are still breastfed. The virus multiplies in the walls of the small intestine, its cells help digest carbohydrates. The villi that are on these cells are damaged due to the active development of the virus. As a result, the process of digestion of sugar contained in milk is disrupted. That is, with rotavirus infection, the absorption of milk is reduced.
The consequences of the virus are the most difficult to treat.
Symptoms of an intestinal infection
Other clinical symptoms that accompany an intestinal infection (vomiting, profuse loose stools, intoxication of the body) require immediate treatment.
Important! At the first symptoms of an intestinal infection, a doctor is urgently called, but while the doctor is on the way, parents should carry out the correct treatment of intestinal infections in children at home.
Signs in children
During illness, body temperature may rise, nausea, vomiting, lethargy, pale complexion, constant desire to sleep, diarrhea, and loss of appetite may appear. If your child has any of these symptoms, see a doctor immediately to prevent dehydration.
Home help for intestinal infections
Before answering the question of how to treat an intestinal infection in children, the doctor will advise you to adhere to certain rules.
Nutrition
First of all, you need to start following a diet for a child:
- For the reasons described above, the consumption of dairy products is strictly prohibited.
- Foods that cause fermentation processes in the stomach should be excluded from the diet. These are fruits, juices, various fruit-based purees.
- At the peak of the disease, you should eat more cereals cooked in water, liquid mashed potatoes, a small amount of boiled pureed meat are suitable for nutrition.
What to do before the doctor arrives
What to do if a severe intestinal infection occurs in a child:
- Drink a lot. With vomiting, as well as diarrhea, electrolytes and mineral salts are washed out of the body. This can lead to dehydration, so the child should drink plenty of water. In addition to water, weak tea with sugar should be given to drink.
- Take Regidron. This is a powder that contains mineral salts, individual vitamins to maintain the strength of the child's body at critical moments. A sachet (for babies one quarter) is diluted with a liter of water.
- Give activated charcoal or another sorbent to drink (at the rate of one tablet per 10 kg of weight). Sorbents are needed to absorb toxins.
- Stop feeding your baby. The break lasts from 6 to 12 hours. Solid food with an intestinal infection will cause new vomiting.
What to do is strictly prohibited
When treating intestinal infections in children at home, it is strictly forbidden to give the child diarrhea remedies. With an unspecified diagnosis, they can worsen the patient's condition.
It is not recommended to give children a solution of potassium permanganate to drink. The effectiveness of the remedy for a viral infection is small, but a large volume of liquid increases vomiting and provokes dehydration. In addition, a concentrated solution of potassium permanganate leads to burns of the mucous membranes in babies.
In acute intestinal infections in children, drugs such as Linex, Hilak-forte are not suitable for taking in the situation described. While the stool is liquid and vomiting continues - these are symptoms of an acute intestinal infection, it is pointless to take all bacteria-based drugs. Do not give anything to eat, even crackers.
Important! If the body temperature is elevated, and this happens often in children with intestinal infections, it is forbidden to rub the child with vodka or vinegar. For an organism that is sick, this will be a strong toxic blow (toxins will enter the body through the skin).
How to treat an intestinal infection in a child
Treatment of intestinal infections in children must be coordinated with a pediatrician.
For children under one year old
If your child is breastfed, you do not need to transfer him to artificial nutrition. It is necessary to feed the same volume, only in smaller doses and more often, so that food is better digested and vomiting is not provoked. Antibiotics are not recommended for children with rotavirus infection. You can use Smecta.
Desoldering
How else is intestinal infection treated in children? It is necessary to give a lot of water, despite the fact that he does not want to drink. With the help of liquid from the body, it will be possible to remove toxins, as well as replenish lost vitamins and trace elements. Drinking should be offered in small portions - teaspoons or dessert spoons, so as not to increase vomiting.
Additionally, you need to take special medicines in the form of powders that will help maintain the strength of the body. The most popular remedy is Regidon. The powder is diluted in a liter of water, drinking will compensate for the loss of water and salts, eliminate a sharp loss of fluid.
Gastrolit will help to quickly relieve the symptoms of an intestinal infection. The product contains not only salts, but also chamomile extract (an additional anti-inflammatory effect). The powder is diluted in a glass of water. If there are no necessary medicines at hand, the child can simply be drunk with a solution based on salt and sugar. Dissolve 1 tsp in 1 liter of water. salt, half a dessert spoon of soda and eight small spoons of sugar.
Diet
If the doctor has determined that hospitalization is not required, then further home treatment falls on the shoulders of the parents. For babies, you need to give up complementary foods (connect a few days after the relief of symptoms). For older children, you can give porridge (only not wheat), boil vegetables, wipe boiled meat. Baked apples, sour-milk food and drinks are allowed.
Food should be given frequently and in small portions. Make sure that after eating the condition does not worsen. You should not force the child to eat: if he eats a couple of spoons after such a severe infection, this is already good. It is not necessary to use crackers, dryers or cookies. The first few days (with the exception of infants) the child may starve. It is recommended to give him rice or oatmeal broth for 2-3 days, and then begin to diversify the diet.
Antibiotic treatment
Some intestinal infections in babies are treated with antibiotics. Here are the medicines for intestinal infection for children:
- Metronidazole;
- Ciprofloxacin;
- Norfloxacin.
Such drugs should be used strictly according to the doctor's prescription, with a confirmed bacterial infection. From other medicines you can use:
- Regidron;
- Enterosgel;
- Smecta or activated carbon.
To restore the microflora, apply: Linex, Canadian yogurt, Acipol.
Treatment after intestinal infection
After the course of treatment, children should be re-analyzed feces to make sure that they are not carrying the infection. During treatment, the child is on a diet, after recovery, you should not interrupt it immediately. Thus, you can only make it worse - the body is not ready to eat various tasty foods, it may not have time to digest it. Also, the body of the child must be provided with enzymes.
Prevention
The most effective method of prevention is vaccination. It is also necessary to follow the rules of hygiene: wash hands before eating, after using the toilet, thoroughly wash food products, process new purchased toys, and monitor the quality of drinking water. It is necessary to accustom the child to sanitary and hygienic rules.
In order not to treat intestinal infections in children at home, you need to know how to avoid such a condition. It will not be difficult to protect the child completely from sources of infection.
