Enteroviral infection

Reference information

The enteroviral infection is understood as the acute diseases of digestive tract caused by enteroviruses. At the moment more than 60 types of causative agents of an enteroviral infection are known. All of them are subdivided into 4 groups depending on a serotype. The most often enteroviral infection is provoked by activity of viruses of Koksaki and poliomyelitis. Danger of an enteroviral infection is that its activators differ in extremely high resistance to action of aggressive environmental factors. They can remain long time in the wet soil and water, getting then into a human body through a city water supply system or the infected food stuffs.

At the beginning of 2008 in China the large-scale enteroviral infection at children was recorded. It was caused by the EV71 virus which did not prove within the last several decades. It gets into an organism through a mucous membrane of a digestive tract or upper airways, and then is carried on other bodies through circulatory system, affecting, among other, lungs and a brain. The enteroviral infection was revealed more than at 15000 children, 20 of them died. This fact reminds us once again that at the diagnosis an enteroviral infection treatment has to be carried out immediately and have complex character.

Ways of infection

Causative agents of an enteroviral infection get to external environment from an intestinal path and a nasopharynx that defines the main ways of infection: airborne, water, food, contact and household. The role of separate factors in the mechanism of transfer is up to the end not clear therefore terms of an incubation interval can vary depending on a condition of immune system of the person, characteristics of a specific type of a virus and conditions of an environment. As a rule, the enteroviral infection proceeds rather easily and does not lead to any serious complications. Nevertheless, the started forms of an enteroviral infection strike the most different bodies and systems, provoke development of a serious illness, in certain cases come to an end with a lethal outcome that we, actually, also observed during the Chinese epidemic.

Symptoms of an enteroviral infection

After the termination of an incubation interval patients have first alarming symptoms of an enteroviral infection:

• fever;
• headache;
• pains in belly area;
• podtashnivaniye, sometimes vomiting.

These symptoms of an enteroviral infection are expressed poorly, and in certain cases the infection does not prove at all. More serious signs are observed only after hit of activators in circulatory system and their distribution on the vital systems of an organism. From this point patients begin to complain on:

• fervescence;
• emergence of rash on hands and legs;
• hypostases of extremities;
• ulcers in an oral cavity.

If the enteroviral infection continues to develop further, and the patient does not undertake any measures to get rid of it, business can reach serious complications: meningitis, encephalitis, fluid lungs and even paralysis. The started enteroviral infection at children and adults leads to death or considerable damages of a brain and disability.

In recent years at children the so-called small enteroviral infection even more often comes to light. It is characterized by slight fever, weakness, muscular pains and usually passes by itself in 2-3 days, without causing the expressed changes from separate bodies.

Diagnosis of a disease

The enteroviral infection at adults is established only on the basis of results of laboratory researches. On their carrying out some time and for this term of the patient is required it is desirable to isolate from other family members. Due to the bystry spread of an infection each case of infection is subject to registration. Unplanned examinations of people which contacted to the patient are at the same time conducted. If during the researches the diagnosis an enteroviral infection was confirmed, symptoms and clinical disease are reflected in the separate card of epidemiological investigation.

Treatment of an enteroviral infection

Now specific methods of treatment of an enteroviral infection do not exist. In the acute period to patients the bed rest, a vitamin-rich diet, plentiful drink is appointed (vomiting and diarrhea can cause organism dehydration). If the enteroviral infection at children is followed by high temperature, and also severe head and muscular pains, then analgetics and antipyretics are recommended to the patient. At diarrhea it is reasonable to be used drugs for recovery of water-salt balance, for example, регидрон. Antibiotics are applied only in cases of accession of consecutive bacterial infections.

The developed diet have to answer the condition following:

• the products strengthening an intestines peristaltics are excluded from a diet (sweet, carbonated drinks, smoked products, black bread, fresh vegetables and fruit, fat and fried dishes);
• food has to be digestible;
• it is desirable to refuse the use of dairy products completely;
• if the enteroviral infection at adults and children is followed by putrefactive processes, patients need to eat baked apples which absorb toxic agents;
• it is the best of all to give food often, but in the small portions. It concerns both adults, and children.

Prevention of an enteroviral infection is directed to sanitary improvement of sources of fresh water, observance of rules of personal hygiene, disinfecting of sewage, providing the population with fresh, qualitative food stuffs and clear drinking water.