Enterocolitis - Causes, symptoms and treatment. MF.

Enterocolitis is a syndrome complex characterized by the defeat of the mucosa of the small and / or large intestine, inflammatory or non-inflammatory nature. The disease can debut at any age, it is equally susceptible to both male and female sex. Prevalence in the population is relatively low 15 to 35 percent. With enterocolitis, various parts of the gastrointestinal tract can be affected, beginning with the stomach and ending with the direct section of the large intestine.

Since enterocolitis is a syndrome it can develop with several diseases: many intestinal infections can be accompanied by enterocolitis, which is characterized by symptoms of the lesion of both the upper and lower gastrointestinal tract, and individually. Very often enterocolitis is combined with gastritis( inflammation of the gastric mucosa), gastroenterocolitis, especially with intestinal infections. Depending on the cause of the inflammatory process, enterocolitis can occur in acute and chronic forms.

Causes of enterocolitis.

The causes of enterocolitis are very diverse, depending on the etiology( the direct cause of the disease), the clinical picture of this syndrome may change. There are several main causes of the inflammatory reaction in the mucosa of the gastrointestinal tract:

• Almost 80% are diverted to intestinal infections caused by various microorganisms, more often it is conditionally pathogenic E. coli, which is normally present in all people in the intestine, salmonella infection, enterovirusinfection.
• Parasitic infestations, various protozoa( opisthorchiasis, trichomonas and amoeba parasites) that penetrate the intestines with poorly processed foods, fish, meat.
• Toxic causes of enterocolitis in the present time increasingly began to occur, they include poisoning with low-quality alcohol, drugs, household pesticides.
• Improper and substandard nutrition in combination with stress can also lead to an inflammatory reaction in the intestine.
• Non-inflammatory diseases of an allergic or autoimmune nature( ulcerative colitis, irritable bowel syndrome).

Symptoms of enterocolitis.

Entericolitis of the acute course is characterized by the appearance of sudden symptoms, such as an attack of acute abdominal pain, diarrhea( upset of the stool) of varying severity, various impurities in the stool( blood, mucus, pus) are possible. Perhaps increased gas formation, rumbling in the abdomen, vomiting as delayed and just eaten food.

When infectious nature enterocolitis, the general condition of the body often suffers, the body temperature rises, signs of intoxication of the body, pronounced weakness, drowsiness, headache, pains in the muscles and joints appear. All this testifies to the progression of the infectious process.

For enterocolitis of chronic course, there is a variety of manifestations of pain syndrome. It starts to change depending on the time of day( increases in the night and morning), may have a connection with food intake or act of defecation( reduction of pain after defecation).The intensity of pain may depend on the location of the underlying pathological process. For the large intestine, there is a marked acute pain that decreases after defecation, but for the small intestine, which lasts for a long time is moderately expressed.

With a long-running process, constipation occurs, which can alternate with a liquid stool.

Weight loss is a very common symptom that occurs with many diseases, it is very important to pay attention to it. Weight goes for a number of reasons: when the small intestine is affected and the body ceases to receive important elements for life, another reason is that people suffering from enterocolitis begin to limit themselves in eating.

If diarrhea or vomiting occurs, you need to contact your doctor, as self-medication with folk methods is not always able to lead to a cure. Infectious enterocolitis, which proceeds quite easily and is treated quickly and effectively, can be confused with formidable diseases such as Crohn's disease and ulcerative-necrotic colitis. These diseases are severe and very often lead to disability. It is difficult to distinguish them and is possible only with the use of special diagnostic methods. Very often, the congenital absence of enzymes responsible for the cleavage of any substances( fermentopathy) can be manifested by enterocolitis with a marked diarrheal syndrome. In these cases it is necessary to determine this enzyme and simply to exclude from the diet those or other products.

Diagnosis of enterocolitis.

Diagnosing infectious enterocolitis is simple enough, if on the eve you did not eat fresh food. From laboratory methods, your doctor will be helped to put an accurate diagnosis of coprogram, bacteriological examination of feces and data of your general condition. For more detailed investigation and differential diagnosis, it is possible to use rectomannoscopy, colonoscopy and other X-ray methods to visualize the gastrointestinal tract, they will help to detect the affected areas of the intestine, possible narrowing or manifestation. During the invasive diagnostic methods, the tissue of the affected area can be taken for a more detailed examination. When carrying out a biochemical blood test, there will be a violation of the protein and lipid balance. In the coprogram fragments of unquenched proteins, fats and carbohydrates, as well as accumulation of leukocytes.

Treatment of enterocolitis.

In the treatment it is very important to establish the immediate cause of the disease. With infectious enterocolitis of the acute course, it is necessary to begin treatment with antibacterial therapy, the choice of antibiotic will depend on the type of pathogen that caused the inflammatory process. The most common use of cephalosporins 2 or 3 generations, sometimes prescribed a combination with drugs of the penicillin series. With a pronounced loss of body fluids during fluid stool and vomiting, it is necessary to increase fluid intake in order to avoid dehydration. It can be herbal teas, compotes from dried fruits, but not coffee, strong teas and sodas. Effective as ancillary agents of microclysters are decoctions of chamomile, oak bark, St. John's wort and bird cherry. With severe pain you can prescribe antispasmodics. For the normalization of digestion, enzyme-containing preparations( mezim-forte, pancreatin, creon) are prescribed, for the prophylaxis of pro-and dysbacteriosis pro-and ye-biotics( biovestin).Treatment of enterocolitis is not infectious nature can occur only under the supervision of a doctor: it can be a doctor gastroenterologist, surgeon or therapist. Treatment of this group of diseases is very complex and multicomponent, it may not only require medical treatment, but also surgical intervention. Therapeutic diet in combination with physiotherapy and the right way of life will help to achieve a faster recovery.

Recommendations for nutrition with enterocolitis.

Therapeutic diet plays an important role in the treatment of this group of diseases. It is necessary to exclude the load on the intestines, removing from the diet for a long time products that enhance intestinal peristalsis( coarse vegetable fiber, sour-milk products, sweet foods).Food should be divided and often up to 5-6 times a day, you need to eat food in small portions.

Possible complications and prevention of enterocolitis.

A timely diagnosis and a properly selected treatment will reduce the risk of complications of enterocolitis by 93%.With late-onset treatment or self-treatment, there is a risk of intestinal perforation with the development of peritonitis and a threat to life. With non-infectious enterocolitis, there is a risk of partial bowel resection with an unnatural anus, or the formation of a callostome.

The prevention of enterocolitis consists in balanced, proper nutrition, exclusion from the diet of thermally poorly processed food, especially in endemic areas. Timely treatment of infectious diseases, taking antibacterial drugs strictly according to indications.

Doctor therapist Zhumagaziev E.N.