$Unique_ID{PAR00063}
$Pretitle{}
$Title{Medical Advice:  Dysentery}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{
Editors of Consumer Guide
Chasnoff, Ira J}
$Subject{Dysentery severe bloody diarrhea fever weakness electrolyte solutions
antidiarrheal medications antidiarrhetic antidiarrhetics antidiarrheic
antidiarrheics medication unsanitary food source water sources traveling
travel intestinal tract infection infections salmonella germs shigella
bacteria Typhoid fever amoeba amoebas cholera arthritis meningitis intestine
perforations ulcers ulcer exhausted exhaustion dehydration dehydrated
electrolytes solution}
$Log{}

Your Child:  A Medical Guide


Dysentery


     Quick Reference

     SYMPTOMS
     - Severe or bloody diarrhea
     - Prolonged high fever
     - Extreme weakness

     HOME CARE
     - Do not treat on your own.  See a doctor.
     - While waiting to see the doctor, give the child plenty of clear
       liquids--tea, flavored gelatin water, and commercial electrolyte
       solutions (available from your pharmacist) are best.
     - Limit or stop giving solid foods.  Avoid giving foods with roughage
       (including vegetables and fruits, except bananas and apples), butter,
       fatty meats, and peanut butter.
     - Do not give the child milk.

     PRECAUTIONS
     - Always report severe or bloody diarrhea to your doctor.
     - A child with diarrhea needs extra liquids to avoid dehydration (a
       serious loss of body fluids).
     - Dehydration is more likely in younger children.  Infants can become
       dehydrated rapidly (within 12 to 24 hours after diarrhea begins).
     - Do not give antidiarrheal medications to children.
     - When traveling, beware of unsanitary sources of food and water.
     - If you suspect dysentery, isolate the child and dispose of stools
       carefully.
     - Practice good hygiene at home.


     In popular usage, dysentery is taken to mean any severe form of diarrhea.
More accurately, dysentery is an infection of the intestinal tract caused by
one of several specific organisms.  Dysentery causes diarrhea, but dysentery
is a distinct disease.
     The germs that cause dysentery are salmonella and shigella bacteria.
(Typhoid fever is caused by a type of salmonella bacteria.)  Dysentery may
also be caused by one-celled organisms called amoebas.  Some doctors consider
cholera to be a form of dysentery.
     Dysentery is the result of eating or drinking food, milk, or water that
is contaminated with these specific bacteria or amoebas.  It also may be
contracted from someone who has the disease or is a carrier of dysentery.  (A
carrier is a person who has the germ in his body but is healthy.)
Complications that may develop from dysentery include arthritis, meningitis,
and intestinal perforations (ulcers).

SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS

     The major symptom of dysentery is diarrhea.  The diarrhea is often severe
and is commonly bloody.  The child may have a prolonged high fever (103
degrees_F to 105 degrees_F).  The child may also be extremely weak and
exhausted.  Any persistent diarrhea should be suspected of being dysentery,
especially if it is severe or bloody.

     HOME CARE

     Do not attempt to treat dysentery on your own.  Whenever diarrhea is
severe or bloody, see your doctor.  Dysentery must be diagnosed by a doctor
and often requires treatment with specific medications.
     While waiting to see the doctor, give the child plenty of clear liquids.
Liquids are needed to replace those being lost because of the diarrhea.  Extra
liquids will help prevent dehydration (a serious loss of body fluids).  Clear
liquids that are the most helpful include commercial electrolyte solutions
(available from your pharmacist), tea, and flavored gelatin water.
     Limit or eliminate solid foods from the child's diet.  Especially avoid
butter, fatty meats, peanut butter, whole-grain cereals, vegetables, and most
fruits (apples and bananas are all right).  Do not give the child milk, since
milk may further aggravate diarrhea.

PRECAUTIONS

  -  Always report severe or bloody diarrhea to your doctor.
  -  If diarrhea lasts more than two or three days, call your doctor.
  -  The younger the child, the more easily dehydration can occur with
     diarrhea.  Infants can become dehydrated rapidly (within 12 to 24 hours
     after diarrhea begins).
  -  Do not give antidiarrheal medications to children, since side effects are
     common and can be dangerous.
  -  When traveling, carefully choose sources of food and water, being alert
     to the possibility of poor sanitation.
  -  If you suspect dysentery, isolate the child and dispose of stools
     carefully.
  -  Practice good hygiene in your home.  Wash hands after treating an ill
     member of the family.  Always wash hands carefully before cooking and
     eating.

MEDICAL TREATMENT

     A culture of the stools (with microscopic examination for amoebas and
other parasites) confirms the diagnosis.  Cultures of the blood and urine are
sometimes performed, as well as tests for specific antibodies in the blood.
     If dysentery is diagnosed, your doctor may hospitalize your child for
treatment and isolation.  Specific antibiotics for treating dysentery are
available, although they are not always necessary.  Diagnosed cases of
dysentery must be reported to health authorities.

RELATED TOPICS:  Arthritis; Dehydration, Diarrhea in older children; Diarrhea
in young children; Meningitis