Infants and young children with this disease have lesions of the colon of an inflammatory-dystrophic nature. Specialists note that in the first months of the child's life, the thick and small intestines are simultaneously defeated. This is due to the physiological features of the structure of the digestive system during this period of life.
In most cases, the signs of colitis in children appear against the background of infection with various viral and bacterial infections that enter the body from the outside. Infection can occur during meals or as a result of non-compliance with personal hygiene rules. In addition, the symptoms of colitis in children can be caused by frequent stressful situations, a violation of the diet, and in newborns the transition to more solid foods. Quite often in the role of the causative agent of this disease are antibacterial drugs, especially with their frequent admission.
Also, according to studies, it has been proven that colitis in children can develop due to a hereditary predisposition or an unfavorable environmental situation.
Symptoms of colitis in a child
Acute symptoms of colitis in newborns are most often caused by dysfunction of the gastrointestinal tract, which develops against the background of allergic reactions, helminthic invasions, and there may also be an unexplained etiology, in which an abnormality is most often found in the formation of digestive organs. The course of treatment should be appointed by a specialist, after determining the form of the disease.
In children's colitis, the main manifestations are pain in the abdomen and stools. In addition, this disease is accompanied by increased gas production with bloating, and with frequent fluid stools, signs of dehydration may appear, the skin becomes excessively dry. Against the background of the ongoing inflammatory process, body temperature can rise sharply.
Infants most difficult to detect colitis and start treatment, because the cause of increased tearfulness, which is usually accompanied by pain, can be other factors, such as growing teeth or lack of sleep. In this case, the defining symptoms of childhood colitis will be frequent regurgitation after feeding, flatulence, as well as irregular stools, with alternating diarrhea and constipation. Colitis in children is accompanied by a violation of sleep, loss of appetite, increased excitability and anxiety during the day.
Another bright manifestation of colitis in children is a blood admixture in the feces, upon detection of which it is necessary without delay to seek help from a specialist and begin treatment. This will prevent the complication of the disease in the child and the transition of the bowel to necrotizing or ulcerative form.
Forms and types of colitis in children and newborns
There are several classifications of this disease. Such varieties as tiflit, angulitis, proctitis or transversitis are determined by the site of localization of the inflammatory process. If you classify the colitis in children by its pronounced manifestations and the course of the disease itself, you can distinguish such forms as infectious, radiation, ulcerative, necrotizing, acute and chronic. The form and type of disease determine the components of the course of therapy.
According to the statistics of children, colitis is most often diagnosed with spastic or ulcerative ulcers, while its form of flow can be either monotonous or recurrent. Necrotizing colitis in newborns in most cases develops against the background of allergic reactions.
Diagnosis of colitis in children
If symptoms of pediatric colitis are detected, you should immediately seek help from a specialist, it can be either a pediatrician or a pediatric gastroenterologist. For accurate diagnosis of the disease and determining its form, they will be assigned a number of necessary for this survey, after which the treatment course will begin.
First of all, it is necessary to pass a clinical blood test, which determines the level of red blood cells, hemoglobin and total protein. In addition, this study allows you to identify leukocytosis, which is often a sign of colitis in newborns.
After this, procedures such as sigmoidoscopy, radiography using contrast medium, colonoscopy and histological examination are prescribed.
The correct approach to the treatment of colitis in children is a pledge of rapid recovery and prevention of recurrent disease!
Specialists emphasize that the treatment of colitis in children should be integrated and not be limited to only a diet or intake of antibacterial drugs.
Drug therapy for colitis in children is to take antibiotics, medicines, which contain a number of enzymes, probiotics and, of course, analgesics, which will reduce pronounced manifestations and painful sensations.
The main signs of children's colitis are significantly weakened during the reception of funds that have enveloping properties, and also have astringent properties. In their role, infusion can come from chamomile and St. John's wort, or bismuth, which will have a beneficial effect on getting rid of the disease.
Symptoms of this disease in children development, which occurs against the background of allergic reactions, are reduced by taking antihistamines.
Only in rare cases treatment of this intestinal disease in children requires surgical intervention, in order to prevent this it is necessary to take timely measures and constantly monitor the course of the disease in the child.
You can not ignore colitis in children and folk medicine, because their plant origin provides only a favorable effect on the body, and help to weaken manifestations. It can be herbal decoctions or microclysters. At the same time, the use of folk remedies must necessarily be agreed with the doctor, especially in the case of colitis in infants.
Nutrition and diet for colitis in children
Correctly selected daily diet and careful processing of food will be an excellent assistant in the treatment of colitis in children. The diet consists of eating foods that do not cause stools or increased gas production. For example, bread should be wheat or rye, and the use of biscuits is also welcomed. When cooking soups, you need to pay attention to the fat content of the broth, it should be minimal, and additional added will be added to the finely ground vegetables. Accordingly, the restriction on fat content applies to meat with fish, it can be chicken, veal, pike perch or pike. Cutlets and meatballs from them should be cooked exclusively for a couple.
It is recommended to drink herbal teas and various freshly squeezed vegetable or fruit juices from beverages to relieve the child of symptoms.
How to protect a child from colitis?
At an early age, the main cause of this disease in children is unbalanced nutrition, so in the first place, you need to carefully monitor the diet.
The second point is to prevent infection with intestinal infections. With all responsibility it is necessary to approach the processing of food and personal hygiene.
In addition, children can not be left out of the role of preventive vaccinations.
In the event that the child's colitis has not been prevented, after treatment, all efforts should be directed to secondary prevention, which consists in preventing the recurrence of signs of the disease.