As the weather turns cooler, beware of "autumn diarrhea"

In September and October every year, the weather gradually turns cooler, and the number of children suffering from "diarrhea" in children's hospitals increases. Most of these children suffer from "rotavirus enteritis", commonly known as "autumn diarrhea". "Rotavirus enteritis", as the name suggests, is a gastrointestinal inflammation caused by rotavirus. Because it is more common in autumn and winter, it is also called "autumn diarrhea". Rotavirus is the primary pathogen of acute gastroenteritis in infants and young children under 5 years old, and almost every child aged 3-5 years has been infected with it at least once. What should we do if our children are infected with such a powerful virus, and how can we prevent it? Let's talk about it today.

What are the symptoms of rotavirus enteritis?

Rotavirus enteritis is common in children under 5 years old. Young infants have relatively mild clinical symptoms because they are protected by maternal antibodies. They are mainly manifested by vomiting and diarrhea (frequent and large stools, yellow watery or egg-drop-shaped), often accompanied by fever, cough, runny nose and other upper respiratory tract symptoms. Older children may have more severe symptoms, which may be accompanied by dehydration, electrolyte imbalance, convulsions, and even death.

The symptoms of rotavirus enteritis are similar to those of gastroenteritis caused by other viruses and are usually difficult to distinguish. However, the diarrheal symptoms of rotavirus enteritis are more severe, including high fever (>38°C), increased diarrhea frequency (>7 times/day), and longer diarrhea cycles, which can slightly distinguish it from other gastroenteritis.

Why do people get infected with rotavirus?

Rotavirus has a stable structure and strong ability to survive in the external environment, which makes it highly contagious. Both infected people and recovering patients can become sources of infection. Moreover, patients begin to excrete toxins through feces 2 days before the onset of diarrhea, and the excretion period can last for more than 30 days. In addition, hands, pollutants, contaminated food and water can all serve as carriers of its transmission. Therefore, it is very difficult to block the spread of rotavirus among the population.

What should I do if my child gets rotavirus enteritis?

First, oral rehydration: Children who are not dehydrated can be given oral rehydration salts or drinking water after each watery bowel movement to prevent dehydration (50 ml for children under 6 months; 100 ml for children 6 months to 2 years old; 150 ml for children 2 to 10 years old) until vomiting and diarrhea stop. For mild or moderate dehydration, oral rehydration salts (ORS) or hypotonic ORS are recommended: dose (ml) = body weight (kg) × (50-75), taken within 4 hours. However, severe dehydration or moderate to severe dehydration in newborns requires intravenous rehydration.

Tips: Simple ways to judge a child's dehydration: first look at the mental state, second look at the eye socket fontanelle, and third look at the amount of tears and urine. If the child's mental state is poor, the eye socket fontanelle is sunken, or even the eyes cannot close, and the amount of tears and urine decreases, then it must be dehydrated.

Second, resume diet as soon as possible: 4-6 hours after rehydration therapy, the diet should be resumed as soon as possible. Breastfed infants and young children should continue to be fed on demand; artificially fed infants and young children can choose lactose-free or low-lactose formula milk powder on the premise of sufficient water supplementation; for older children, there are no dietary restrictions, but carbonated drinks, jellies, canned juices, desserts and high-fat foods should be avoided.

In addition, oral zinc supplementation can be used: For children aged 6 months to 5 years, zinc supplementation can reduce the duration and severity of diarrhea and reduce the recurrence of diarrhea. Recommended dose: ≥ 6 months: 20 mg/d (elemental zinc) for 10-14 days (20 mg elemental zinc is equivalent to 100 mg zinc sulfate or 140 mg zinc gluconate).

How to prevent rotavirus enteritis?

As we said before, rotavirus is highly contagious and it is difficult to block its spread, but some measures can still be taken to prevent it. First of all, the most important thing is hand hygiene. The fecal-oral route is the main route of rotavirus transmission, but children touch here and there every day and put their hands in their mouths inadvertently. Therefore, parents must pay attention to washing their children's hands frequently, and the bottles, tableware, potties and toys at home should also be disinfected regularly. In addition, vaccinating children with rotavirus vaccine after 6 months of age can also prevent rotavirus infection to a certain extent.

Having said so much, let me summarize it into a jingle to make it easier for everyone to remember!

Rotavirus is highly contagious, so don’t panic, parents.

Take oral rehydration to prevent dehydration and eat a normal diet to supplement nutrition.

Don’t eat snacks and sweets indiscriminately, zinc supplementation can help.

Hand hygiene is the key, and vaccination will keep you healthy.