Rotavirus infection in children: symptoms and treatment, signs, prevention
What it is? Rotavirus infection - a disease in which inflammation of the upper respiratory tract, as well as the stomach and intestines. Called pathology Rotavirus of the genus Rotavirus, which is very contagious.
Children are mostly sick from six months to 5 years;outbreaks of this intestinal infection in children's groups and in the family are often recorded.
Adults are infected by caring for a sick rotavirus infection by a child, they have a disease in almost all cases is many times easier. The symptoms and treatment of rotavirus will be discussed in this article.
Source of infection - a sick person, less often - a virus carrier. An adult can also infect who carries an erased form of the disease and does not suspect about it.
The infectious period begins with the appearance of the first signs of rotavirus infection in children until the moment of full recovery, which should be determined by a negative rot-test( since there is a "second wave" of the disease).On 3-5 days of illness of the patient - it is especially infectious: it allocates the maximum quantity of viruses with a feces.
Direct transmission by airborne droplets( with coughing, talking, kissing and sneezing) is still challenged by scientists. It is easy enough to get infected through food, especially dairy and sour milk, in the preparation of which the patient or the virus carrier was involved: the virus is stored for a long time together with the product in the refrigerator, and at 100 ° C such food is not processed.
Drinking unboiled water, if it got rotavirus, can also trigger the development of the disease: chlorine to the virus particle does not work.
Read also the signs of adenovirus and enterovirus infection.
If the child has contacted another baby who has signs of upper airway inflammation( runny nose, cough, sneezing) caused by rotavirus, the disease will develop 12-96 hours later.
There are several scenarios for the initiation of rotavirus infection:
In adults, this infection is asymptomatic in 90% of cases or signs of rotavirus infection are not expressed.
So, can develop:
See also how to treat intestinal flu in adults.
There is no specific therapy for this disease.
1) As an antiviral treatment for rotavirus infection, interferon preparations are used - an analog of the main non-specific antiviral substance that is produced in the body when a virus is introduced into it. In most cases, either "Viferon"( "Laferon") is used in the form of candles, or "Lipoferon" in the form of a small-volume suspension, taken through the mouth. Both drugs are used in 5 days. The dosage of the drug is selected by the doctor according to the age of the child.
2) Rehydration, that is, the return to the body of the lost to them with diarrhea, vomiting and temperature of the fluid is the main component of the treatment. This volume is called the replenishment fluid, and its parents can determine by eye - how much the baby has already pulled out, how watery the diarrhea was, how profusely it sweated. In addition, you need to provide the baby with the fluid that is necessary to maintain his life, kidney work and fight infection. It is called "liquid consumption", you can see it in the table, depending on the weight of the child.
The third component that must be obtained by a child's body is a liquid that is lost until you replenish the previous 2 volumes. The sum of the three previous components must be returned to the child.
Ideally it looks like this: give every 10 minutes on a spoon - tea or dessert. Start with a teaspoon, and if within an hour of vomiting, you can try to give a little more, then more, but to expand the drinking regime - gradually. You can drink water, solutions of "Human electrolyte", "Regidron", "Oralit", a weak and almost unsweet compote of dried fruits, rice broth, chamomile broth.
3) Sorbents, that is, drugs that will take on themselves all the toxins that are present in the intestine during its inflammation: Smecta, White Coal, Atoxil and others. This is a mandatory component of treatment, which is also given in the age-related dosage.
4) Decrease in body temperature, increased above 38.4 ° C: with syrups( Nurofen, Efferalgan) and candles( Efferalgan, Cefekon) given in the age-related dosage. It is also necessary to wipe the child with a water-alcohol solution( 1: 1), opening it. This is also the prevention of seizures, which can develop in children under 6 years old against a background of high temperature."Aspirin" and "Acetylsalicylic acid" for children with infection are deadly, they can not be given.
5) If the diagnosis is accurate, that is, an express company test( it can be bought at the pharmacy and performed by itself) was conducted, and it turned out to be positive, antibiotics are not prescribed. Otherwise, the syrup "Enterofuril" or "Nifuroxazide" is used.
6) For pains in the abdomen, the child is given "Riabal" or "No-shpa" in the age-related dosage.
7) It is also necessary to take probiotics: "Latsidofila", "Bifilakta" or others.
8) When acetone is found in the urine( from which the child often becomes sluggish and sleepy), an additional 100-200 ml / day is added to the calculated volume of the liquid by 2-4 plus. Effective in this case, and drugs "Citrarginine" or "Stimol", dissolved in 200 ml, which should be consumed during the day.
9) Diet with rotavirus infection: all sour-milk products, fried and fatty foods are excluded. The basis of nutrition - mashed potatoes, rice porridge without any vegetable or meat additives. You can eat bananas, dry biscuits, bagels( drying) and straws. You can not force children to feed. Artificial babies are transferred to lactose-free mixtures( "Nan-lactose", "Nestamentless lactose" and others).
Rotavirus infection can be the cause of complications such as:
To treat this complication you need a fluid intake, if the child can drink something with sweetened water, tea, compote. Too sweet can not be given, it will increase gas formation in the intestines.
Nonspecific prevention is the observance of hygiene measures, and also, if someone from the family is already sick, processing his dishes( boiling in water with soda), a toilet room. Child to such an adult is not allowed for about a week, or carefully wash his hands, and an adult wear a mask.
Vaccines for this disease have also been developed that are not on the mandatory list of vaccinations, and are effective for children under 2 years. As an emergency prophylaxis( if there has already been contact with a person with rotavirus infection by a human), vaccines are not used.
Children are mostly sick from six months to 5 years;outbreaks of this intestinal infection in children's groups and in the family are often recorded.
Adults are infected by caring for a sick rotavirus infection by a child, they have a disease in almost all cases is many times easier. The symptoms and treatment of rotavirus will be discussed in this article.
How can I get infected?
Source of infection - a sick person, less often - a virus carrier. An adult can also infect who carries an erased form of the disease and does not suspect about it.
The infectious period begins with the appearance of the first signs of rotavirus infection in children until the moment of full recovery, which should be determined by a negative rot-test( since there is a "second wave" of the disease).On 3-5 days of illness of the patient - it is especially infectious: it allocates the maximum quantity of viruses with a feces.
The main way of transfer of rotavirus infection is through dirty hands, door handles, furnishings, toys, unwashed products, where the virus could get from both feces and from the separated nasopharynx( snot, saliva) of the patient.
Direct transmission by airborne droplets( with coughing, talking, kissing and sneezing) is still challenged by scientists. It is easy enough to get infected through food, especially dairy and sour milk, in the preparation of which the patient or the virus carrier was involved: the virus is stored for a long time together with the product in the refrigerator, and at 100 ° C such food is not processed.
Drinking unboiled water, if it got rotavirus, can also trigger the development of the disease: chlorine to the virus particle does not work.
Read also the signs of adenovirus and enterovirus infection.
Symptoms of rotavirus infection in children
If the child has contacted another baby who has signs of upper airway inflammation( runny nose, cough, sneezing) caused by rotavirus, the disease will develop 12-96 hours later.
There are several scenarios for the initiation of rotavirus infection:
- The first option begins with the manifestation of catarrhal symptoms in the child: sore throat, runny nose, dry cough, conjunctivitis. The temperature does not usually rise. Signs of the inflammatory process in the gastrointestinal tract develop after.
- 2-nd version begins with the symptoms that indicate that inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract has occurred.
- The third option is usually observed in young children who have intoxication at the forefront: the child is sluggish, drowsy( may be nervous, crying), refuses food, presses the legs to the stomach. Only then develop symptoms of intestinal infection, which make it possible to correctly diagnose the disease.
- 1) Vomiting. In most cases everything begins with it. It can be 2-3 times, maybe more often. The child becomes sluggish, and all attempts to drink it with water result in vomiting.
- 2) Liquid stool: it can be yellow, can be dark brown, with an unpleasant odor. With a clean rotavirus infection, there is no blood or greens in it, mucus can be. The frequency of the stool is different. Some children have a 5-10-fold stool, while others go to the toilet 1-2 times more often than usual. Diarrhea is observed for 3-5 days, then this symptom( with an adequate diet) disappears.
- 3) Lack of appetite, lethargy, drowsiness is due to the fact that rotavirus causes severe intoxication. In combination with the acetone state( we'll talk about it later), which develops in 70% of sick children, parents notice that the child is "lying in bed".
- 4) Temperature rise up to different digits. This infection is characterized by a "persistent" high temperature, which is poorly reduced by antipyretic agents, and is the second( after vomiting and diarrhea) cause for concern for parents.
- 5) Abdominal pain, usually in the navel area, which is spastic, decreasing after defecation and taking spasmolytic drugs( Riabal, No-shpa).
Rotavirus infection in adults: symptoms of
In adults, this infection is asymptomatic in 90% of cases or signs of rotavirus infection are not expressed.
So, can develop:
- short-term temperature rise;
- loose stools several times( less than 5) 1-2 days;
- general weakness;
- vomiting - single or absent;
- decreased appetite;
- catarrhal symptoms may be minor or absent altogether.
See also how to treat intestinal flu in adults.
Treatment of rotavirus infection
There is no specific therapy for this disease.
1) As an antiviral treatment for rotavirus infection, interferon preparations are used - an analog of the main non-specific antiviral substance that is produced in the body when a virus is introduced into it. In most cases, either "Viferon"( "Laferon") is used in the form of candles, or "Lipoferon" in the form of a small-volume suspension, taken through the mouth. Both drugs are used in 5 days. The dosage of the drug is selected by the doctor according to the age of the child.
2) Rehydration, that is, the return to the body of the lost to them with diarrhea, vomiting and temperature of the fluid is the main component of the treatment. This volume is called the replenishment fluid, and its parents can determine by eye - how much the baby has already pulled out, how watery the diarrhea was, how profusely it sweated. In addition, you need to provide the baby with the fluid that is necessary to maintain his life, kidney work and fight infection. It is called "liquid consumption", you can see it in the table, depending on the weight of the child.
The third component that must be obtained by a child's body is a liquid that is lost until you replenish the previous 2 volumes. The sum of the three previous components must be returned to the child.
Ideally it looks like this: give every 10 minutes on a spoon - tea or dessert. Start with a teaspoon, and if within an hour of vomiting, you can try to give a little more, then more, but to expand the drinking regime - gradually. You can drink water, solutions of "Human electrolyte", "Regidron", "Oralit", a weak and almost unsweet compote of dried fruits, rice broth, chamomile broth.
If you see that the fluid is lost faster than it is compensated, if there is vomiting after even 5 ml of fluid, contact the hospital, only with the help of droppers you can save the child.
3) Sorbents, that is, drugs that will take on themselves all the toxins that are present in the intestine during its inflammation: Smecta, White Coal, Atoxil and others. This is a mandatory component of treatment, which is also given in the age-related dosage.
4) Decrease in body temperature, increased above 38.4 ° C: with syrups( Nurofen, Efferalgan) and candles( Efferalgan, Cefekon) given in the age-related dosage. It is also necessary to wipe the child with a water-alcohol solution( 1: 1), opening it. This is also the prevention of seizures, which can develop in children under 6 years old against a background of high temperature."Aspirin" and "Acetylsalicylic acid" for children with infection are deadly, they can not be given.
5) If the diagnosis is accurate, that is, an express company test( it can be bought at the pharmacy and performed by itself) was conducted, and it turned out to be positive, antibiotics are not prescribed. Otherwise, the syrup "Enterofuril" or "Nifuroxazide" is used.
6) For pains in the abdomen, the child is given "Riabal" or "No-shpa" in the age-related dosage.
7) It is also necessary to take probiotics: "Latsidofila", "Bifilakta" or others.
8) When acetone is found in the urine( from which the child often becomes sluggish and sleepy), an additional 100-200 ml / day is added to the calculated volume of the liquid by 2-4 plus. Effective in this case, and drugs "Citrarginine" or "Stimol", dissolved in 200 ml, which should be consumed during the day.
9) Diet with rotavirus infection: all sour-milk products, fried and fatty foods are excluded. The basis of nutrition - mashed potatoes, rice porridge without any vegetable or meat additives. You can eat bananas, dry biscuits, bagels( drying) and straws. You can not force children to feed. Artificial babies are transferred to lactose-free mixtures( "Nan-lactose", "Nestamentless lactose" and others).
Dr. Komarovsky on the signs and methods of treating rotavirus infection in children:
Complications of
Rotavirus infection can be the cause of complications such as:
- 1) Dehydration, which may result in a child dying. Prevents its timely begun evaporation, and if the fluid is not given up, seek medical attention. In this case, it is not necessary to "run away" from the hospital, as soon as the child has become easier after the first dropper - the rotavirus infection does not end so quickly.
- 2) Acetonemic state - the appearance in the body of ketone bodies, toxic( but reversibly) acting on the brain. They appear due to the fact that the body, actively fighting infection, has used up all carbohydrates( and new ones did not eat it with food), and started to eat fats. During the splitting of the latter, a ketone( acetone) is formed.
To treat this complication you need a fluid intake, if the child can drink something with sweetened water, tea, compote. Too sweet can not be given, it will increase gas formation in the intestines.
- 1) Seizures that develop against a background of high temperature. Their prevention is the timely cooling not only with the help of drugs, but also with the physical methods of cooling( "half-alcohol wiping").
- 2) Neurotoxicosis is a complex of symptoms of nervous system damage due to the toxic effect of the virus. It can be convulsions against a background of normal or not very high temperature, drowsiness( in the absence of acetone in the urine), fainting, delusional state of consciousness.
Prevention measures
Nonspecific prevention is the observance of hygiene measures, and also, if someone from the family is already sick, processing his dishes( boiling in water with soda), a toilet room. Child to such an adult is not allowed for about a week, or carefully wash his hands, and an adult wear a mask.
Vaccines for this disease have also been developed that are not on the mandatory list of vaccinations, and are effective for children under 2 years. As an emergency prophylaxis( if there has already been contact with a person with rotavirus infection by a human), vaccines are not used.