What is acute gastroenteritis?
Acute gastroenteritis is inflammation of the stomach and intestines. Diarrhea is the main symptom in this disease, and it may be accompanied by nausea, vomiting, fever and abdominal pain. Acute diarrhea is diarrhea that lasts less than 14 days.
What are the causes and modes of transmission of acute gastroenteritis?
Acute gastroenteritis is usually caused by a virus or bacteria, and less commonly by a virus. It is created by the parasite. Gastroenteritis develops by eating food or drinking water or beverages contaminated with feces containing the agent, or by putting dirty hands that have come into contact with the agent into the mouth.
What are the symptoms of the disease?
Diarrhea is seen in all gastroenteritis, regardless of the causative agent of the disease. In diarrhea caused by viruses, blood is not seen in the stool. Some bacteria cause bloody, slimy diarrhea, while others lead to bloodless, watery or watery stools. Nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain and fever frequently develop in acute gastroenteritis. Sometimes gas accumulation in the intestine, headache, and fatigue are also observed.
What is dehydration?
Dehydration is the loss of water and fluid from the body. Dehydration is more common in infants and young children. Fluid loss resulting from diarrhea, vomiting and fever can also disrupt the body's electrolyte (salt and mineral) balance. The sign that indicates mild dehydration is that the patient is thirsty. As water loss from the body increases, in addition to thirst, dry lips and mouth, tendency to sleep, decrease in tears or lack of tears, collapse in the eyeballs, rapid pulse, coldness in the hands and feet, deep or rapid breathing, and decrease in the amount of urine may occur. In severe dehydration, in addition to these, confusion, drop in blood pressure, inability to pass urine and shock may be observed.
How is acute gastroenteritis diagnosed?
Patient history and examination findings are usually sufficient for the diagnosis of acute gastroenteritis. Since antimicrobial drugs must be used in the treatment of diarrhea caused by some bacteria and parasites, if it is thought that the disease agent may be one of these microbes, stool tests and other tests can be performed for them. Check the level of salt and minerals in the blood It may need to be done.
What is done in the treatment?
Most acute gastroenteritis resolves spontaneously. Treatment is usually supportive therapy. If there is fever, antipyretic drugs can be used. Some gastroenteritis requires antibiotic therapy or antiparasitic therapy to treat. In bacterial gastroenteritis, antibiotic treatment is required to prevent the disease from worsening and shorten its duration. Bloody stools suggest bacterial gastroenteritis that requires antibiotic treatment. In the basic principles of diarrhea treatment, if the diarrhea is not bloody and viral diarrhea is considered, it is sufficient to maintain the patient's fluid and electrolyte balance and maintain nutrition. The child should be monitored for signs of dehydration. In babies and children under one year old, excessive fluid loss from the body may occur within a few hours. Fluids and electrolytes lost through diarrhea and vomiting should be replaced orally if possible. Children with signs of mild or moderate dehydration and those who do not have excessive vomiting should be provided with adequate oral fluid and electrolyte supplements. In cases of severe dehydration or when oral fluid therapy cannot be applied, intravenous fluid therapy should be administered in the hospital. In cases of long-lasting diarrhea, especially bloody and foul-smelling, laboratory tests should be performed. If the examinations support bacterial infection, antibiotic treatment must be given. Otherwise, there is a risk of the disease spreading to the body through the blood (sepsis) and intestinal knotting, and diarrhea may result in death in this case.
Disease. How can it turn out?
Patients with acute gastroenteritis usually recover completely in less than 10 days. However, the microbe that causes disease in the intestine can sometimes spread to other organs and tissues through the blood. Electrolyte changes may cause convulsions (convulsions) and cessation of bowel movements
. Excessive bowel movements during diarrhea can cause intestinal obstruction. These are conditions that can be treated appropriately. Long-lasting electrolyte disturbances can cause brain damage in young babies. Especially when excessive fluid and electrolyte loss that occurs in viral diarrhea is not replaced, If the necessary antibiotic treatment is not given in bacterial diarrhea (especially bloody diarrhea accompanied by vomiting), the spread of the microbe to extra-intestinal organs through the blood may result in shock and death.
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