Enterocolitis symptoms, treatment and prevention methods

The summer season is associated with the maximum frequency of enterocolitis cases. Especially children are affected because their sensitive stomach can not tolerate foods that have undergone organoleptic changes due to inadequate temperatures. But there are also infectious agents predominantly involved in cold season illnesses such as Norwater virus or rotaviruses. Also, the spread of digestive infections is favored by socio-economic factors such as the level of sanitation, poor water supply or poor individual hygiene. Not only children are targeted, but also adults who, due to non-compliance with hygiene rules, can easily become ill with various digestive disorders. But what is, more precisely, enterocolitis, how does it manifest, what measures can we take to improve the symptoms, and especially how can we prevent it? .

This is usually manifested by moderate or severe diarrhea, which may be accompanied by appetite loss, vomiting, cramps and abdominal discomfort. Although it is usually not severe in healthy adults, causing only discomfort and inconvenience, very ill, very young or very old patients can cause severe dehydration and electrolyte imbalances, both potentially fatal. Symptoms The type and severity of symptoms depend on the type and amount of ingested microorganisms or toxins as well as the individual resistance. The onset is usually sudden - sometimes dramatic - with loss of appetite, nausea or vomiting. Patients have strong intestinal noise and sometimes abdominal cramps.

Diarrhea, however, is the most common symptom in the case of enterocolitis, and can be accompanied by visible removal of blood and mucus with faeces. Also, meteorism, bloating, fever, general malaise, muscle aches and extreme exhaustion are among the manifestations of enterocolitis. Episodes of vomiting and severe diarrhea can lead to marked dehydration, which results in weakness, decreased frequency of episodes of urination, dry mouth and crying without tears (in the case of young children). It should be taken into account that hydro-electrolyte imbalances are potentially severe, especially in infants, the elderly or in persons suffering from chronic conditions. Enterocolitis - Causes Infestations that cause enterocolitis can be transmitted from one person to another (interpersonal contact), especially if a person who has diarrhea does not wash his hands well after having a chair.

A person's infection can also occur following the ingestion of food or water that has been contaminated with infected feces. Most foods can be contaminated with bacteria and produce enterocolitis if they are not heat-treated or pasteurized properly. Contaminated water is sometimes ingested in unusual ways, for example by swimming in a contaminated pool of faeces removed by an infected person. In some cases, the infection is acquired by contact with animals carrying the infectious micro-organism. Top Microorganisms producing Campylobacter enterocolitis SOURCE: Consumption of contaminated meat (especially hot chicken meat insufficiently prepared), ingestion of contaminated water or unpasteurized milk.

SYMPTOMS: Blood diarrhea (rarely aqueous) that persists in 7 days. Salmonella SURSE: Consumption of contaminated food, contact with reptiles (iguanas, snakes, turtles). SYMPTOMS: fever, abdominal cramps, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea (with blood or not), lasting between 3-7 days. Shigella SURSE: interpersonal contact, especially in nurseries. SYMPTOMS: moderate or severe diarrhea, aqueous faeces, low consistency, defecation pain that usually persists for about a week.

Escherichia coli SOURCE: inadequately cooked heat, unpasteurized milk, swimming in contaminated pisine, interpersonal contact, touching infected animals and then putting fingers in the mouth. SYMPTOMS: abdominal cramps with sudden onset, aqueous diarrhea that becomes blood pressure in the first 24 hours, haemolytic-remission syndrome. Clostridium difficile SOURSE: infection occurs in people taking antibiotics due to colonization with pathogenic bacteria SYMPTOMS: diarrhea. Entamoeba histolytica SURSE: Ingestion of food or contaminated water. SYMPTOMS: blood diarrhea, abdominal pain, weight loss, infections in the liver or other organs, symptoms that last for 1-3 weeks.

E. Enterotoxigenic sheets SOURCE: Ingestion of food or contaminated water. SYMPTOMS: Aqueous diarrhea usually lasting between 3 and 5 days. Vibrio cholerae SOURCE: Ingestion of food or contaminated water. SYMPTOMS: Unpalatable aqueous diarrhea, vomiting, massive fluid loss or even electrolytic shock.

Staphylococcus aureus SURSE: Ingestion of foods contaminated with toxins produced by this bacterium. SYMPTOMS: nausea, vomiting, symptoms that begin 2-8 hours after ingestion of contaminated foods. Viral infections (rotaviruses, Norwalk virus, astroviruses, enteric adenoviruses) SOURCES: epidemic and frequently seasonal infections. SYMPTOMS: aqueous diarrhea, vomiting, fever, persisting for 2-7 days. Giardia SURSE: Ingestion of contaminated spring water, interpersonal contact, especially in nurseries and kindergartens.

SYMPTOMS: diarrhea, nausea, loss of appetite, which persist for a longer time (from a few days to several weeks), with the elimination of gallbladder, abdominal bloating, gas abatement and weight loss. Cryptosporidium SURSE: Ingestion of contaminated water, interpersonal contact (people with AIDS are more susceptible to this infection). SYMPTOMS: aqueous diarrhea, abdominal cramps, nausea, vomiting. Enterocolitis - Diagnosis Diagnosis is easy to diagnose based on symptoms, but determining the cause of the illness may prove difficult. Sometimes other family members or colleagues have recently reported similar symptoms.

Sometimes enterocolitis appears to be caused by the ingestion of contaminated or insufficiently heat-treated foods. Traveling recently, especially in certain countries, may also provide clues about the cause of the disease. If symptoms are severe or persist for more than 48 hours, samples of faeces can be examined in the laboratory to detect the presence of white blood cells and bacteria, viruses or parasites. Rarely, in the attempt to discover the cause, samples can be analyzed in the laboratory from the fluid of vomiting, food or blood. If the symptoms persist for more than a few days, it may be necessary to examine the large intestine by colonoscopy to determine whether the person is suffering from another type of illness such as ulcerative colitis.

Enterocolitis - Prevention Since most infections that produce enterocolitis are transmitted from one person to another, especially through direct or indirect contact with infected feces, proper washing of hands after each chair - using water and soap - is the most effective way . To prevent food-borne infections, meat and eggs should be appropriately cooked and what remains after the meal should be frozen as quickly as possible. In infants, a simple and effective way of preventing breastfeeding is breastfeeding, but mother needs to take care of food. Prevention of enterocolitis is possible by observing the rules of individual hygiene: washing hands with water and soap before any meal, effective washing of foods that are consumed thermally unprocessed, washing and disinfecting cutlery, dishes using only water from safe, uncontaminated sources, . Enterocolitis - Treatment Not always the treatment of the cause, ie the eradication of the infectious agent with antibiotics is indicated.

Diarrhea caused by viruses does not respond to antibiotic treatments! . First of all, in the treatment of enterocolite is the correction of the losses of liquids and electrolytes. This is achieved by the consumption of liquids - unsweetened teas, mineral water (flat), rice juice, carrot soup. Useful is the addition of rehydration salts found in pharmacies in appropriate dosing sachets. For abdominal pain relief, antispasmodic (only on doctor's recommendation), abdominal heat.

Vomiting can be treated with Emetiral, Torecan, Metoclopramide, but only at the doctor's indication and in the appropriate dosage. Often, with an adequate diet, enterocolites heal in a few days. The diet is based on cooked rice, fresh cheese, apple races, sliced ​​vegetable soup, cooked meat. Crude vegetables and fruits, dairy products and roasted vegetables are excluded. The regimen should be maintained 2-3 days after the symptoms have disappeared.

As the symptoms improve, the patient can begin to eat gentle foods on the digestive system, such as cereals, bananas, rice, marmalade and toasted bread. Antibiotics are used in some cases of bacterial enterocolitis: bacterial dysentery, gastroenteritis with Salmonella, risk of bacteraemia and extraintestinal localizations, forms that do not respond to diet and symptomatic medication, recurrent forms, infant enterocolitis, positive coprocultures. They are also recommended in enterocolites of children in collectivities, enterocolite of staff in areas with high epidemiological risk and enterocolitis with persistent fever. Antibiotic administration is only at the doctor's indication. The recommended antibiotic, daily dose, duration of treatment, differs according to the etiology of enterocolitis, the severity of the disease, the age of the patient.