An acute infectious disease that is quite common in children is whooping cough. The first symptoms of the disease should be known to all modern parents, since pathology requires the provision of qualified medical care to the baby. The disease is transmitted by airborne droplets. It can be suspected by a characteristic cough, spasms. In recent years, the frequency of diagnosis of whooping cough has become greater than before. Doctors explain this by the reluctance of parents to vaccinate their child. Often taps are completely unfounded.
Where did the trouble come from?
Before looking for a photo of whooping cough in children (the symptoms and treatment of this disease is not the easiest topic), you should understand what causes the problem. Knowing where the infection comes from, it is possible to carry out prophylaxis successfully, which means that the child will not have to survive this serious illness. You can get it from an already sick individual. Often this happens when in contact with a person who carries pertussis in an erased form, without symptoms, in a mild form. The highest chances of contracting infection are in the first days of infection, that is, at the very moment when it is most difficult to suspect and identify the disease.
If the vaccine was not given on time, the susceptibility of the infectious agent in childhood tends to one hundred percent, which means that only contact with the patient is enough to get infected. When analyzing the topic of symptoms, treatment, and prevention of pertussis in children, considering the features of the course and consequences of the disease, one should remember about the formation of immunity after a disease once suffered. Previously, it was thought that he appears persistent, for life, but specialized studies conducted recently have shaken the confidence of doctors. A final official opinion on this issue has not yet been clarified. At the same time, it is believed that the likelihood of recurrence of the disease, as well as primary after the vaccine is very low. If this does happen, the disease is mild.
How to notice?
Immediately after contact with an infected individual, a person becomes ill, but at first the pathology does not manifest itself. This period is called incubation. Its duration varies significantly - some have just a couple of days, others have up to twenty. Most often, the duration is about a week, after which severe symptoms can be observed. How is pertussis in children? The most typical nuance is the cyclical development of the disease. Doctors distinguish three consecutive steps - catarrhal, cramping, resolution.
It all starts with the catarrhal stage. Duration - from a week to two, sometimes - another week more if a child who has previously been vaccinated is ill. Symptoms of pertussis in children at this phase are expressed implicitly, the condition is generally satisfactory, the baby feels normal. Possible low-grade fever, but more often - normal. The only factor indicating the presence of an infectious agent is a non-productive cough, that is, constant coughing, not accompanied by a discharge of secretions. Sometimes a cough becomes intrusive. To a greater extent this is characteristic of evening time, night. The symptom is persistent, with time it becomes stronger, and the treatment does not show the proper result.
Disease development
Without proper treatment, the stage becomes spasmodic. The most pronounced symptom of pertussis in children at this moment is coughing with cramping. The child suffers from attacks. This is the height of the pathology. It is at this step that complications most often arise. Whooping cough is most dangerous for very young children - until they reach the age of one. It is not difficult to identify the disease, since a characteristic cough is not characteristic of other diseases. On the exhale of the child, numerous tremors shake, following one after another. Then there is a reprise, that is, a breath followed by a whistle, and on exhalation, a coughing attack begins again. Sometimes the duration of a coughing seizure is a few minutes. At the end, sputum discharge is observed - white or transparent. At the end of the attack, he often vomits. There is a chance of uncontrolled stool, urination.
Symptoms of pertussis in children include the appearance of the patient at the time of coughing. The tongue reflexively protrudes forward, it is clear that it has turned red, puffy. With the progress of the disease, the organ acquires a bluish tint, the lips turn blue, and an involuntary profuse lacrimation is noticeable. Wreaths swell around the neck, sweat is actively released. Overstrain can cause hemorrhage in the organs of vision, skin, on the body in the upper half. This is noticeable by small reddish spots on the skin. Small vessels burst in the eye proteins.
It's important to know
The described symptoms of pertussis in children last from half a month to a month. In the absence of complications outside a coughing fit, the child feels completely normal, the heat is not observed, the appetite is normal, the baby is active, interested in games, curious - in a word, behaves completely normal.
If the pathology proceeds in a severe form, it is especially important to approach the treatment correctly. Symptoms of pertussis in children at the stage of cramping can occur up to three dozen times in 24 hours, or even more. The child cannot sleep normally, the appetite suffers, the likelihood of complications is increased. Even outside a coughing attack, it is noticeable that the baby is unhealthy - the face swells, the skin, sclera show signs of hemorrhage.
The final stage
If the correct treatment has been carried out , the symptoms of pertussis in children gradually begin to fade, coughing attacks are not so pronounced, and their duration becomes shorter. Between seizures, time intervals increase. The duration of this step is up to two months. In total, the disease lasts from a quarter of a year or more. A third of this time the child suffers from severe, painful attacks.
Not everything is so obvious!
Symptoms of pertussis are possible in vaccinated children, as well as those who have had this disease according to the scheme described above. Pathology develops in an erased form, it is easily tolerated. Attacks are not observed, but a weak unproductive cough worries for a long time. This symptom manifests itself for a month, often an even longer period.
Similar manifestations are characterized by pertussis. This is a disease related to whooping cough, provoked by another pathogen of a close nature. Like the symptoms of pertussis in children 2 years old (and at a different age), the manifestations of pertussis include prolonged coughing, but in the second case, the attacks are transferred to the patient a little easier. Paracussis is very unlikely to be a source of complications.
Why be afraid?
If symptoms of pertussis in children under one year of age do not cause timely access to qualified help, there is a chance of encephalopathy. At an older age, the risk of such a complication is also present, but is more likely characteristic of severely occurring forms of the disease. Encephalopathy is perhaps the most problematic consequence of whooping cough. The term refers to a brain lesion that is provoked by a lack of supply of blood, oxygen to organic tissues against the background of coughing attacks. Such deterioration can be suspected if the patient has convulsive conditions, the child loses consciousness. In addition, the disease can cause the development of pneumonia, bronchitis, if there is an infection with pathological bacteria, viruses. There is a risk of spontaneous pneumothorax due to coughing attacks.
Symptoms of pertussis in children 3 years old (and at a different age) with complications of a bacterial, viral nature include fever, fever. The child continues to cough, becomes lethargic, appetite disappears - in this way the organism is poisoned by the waste products of pathological bacteria. Shortness of breath is observed.
Establishing diagnosis
In order to understand what and how to treat, the symptoms of pertussis in children should first be checked by a qualified doctor. Examining the patient, collecting information about his condition, the doctor usually formulates the diagnosis without difficulty, since a coughing attack is usually enough for this. If the doctor sees a coughing attack with his own eyes, the diagnosis will be made immediately, but this situation is unlikely, because more often the disease attacks in the evening and at night. The main task of parents is to pay special attention of a specialist to a cough, in paints at the reception, to describe in as much detail as possible how the disease manifests itself. It is generally accepted that pertussis is extremely rare, because most children have received the vaccine, but this is nothing more than a stereotype. In practice, the disease is quite common, as an increasing number of parents refuse to vaccinate their children. Parents should take this into account, focusing the doctor's attention on the health problems of the baby.
If it was possible to convince the doctor that the cause may be in whooping cough, the doctor sends for special studies. Organic liquids are taken for the laboratory, blood is checked for an increased concentration of leukocytes, a smear of mucus is obtained from the back of the pharynx to check for bacteria. Mostly smear results are falsely negative. Bacteria can be easily noticed at the catarrhal step, but at this stage, the disease is almost never detected. Another way to clarify the patient's condition is serological, when blood is taken to detect specific antibodies. To do this, you need to get samples from a vein. This technique is the most accurate, but its implementation is quite expensive, so few hospitals have the appropriate equipment.
How to treat?
If the case is mild or proceeds according to a moderate scenario, the child undergoes therapy at home, regularly visiting a doctor to monitor the results. If the baby is younger than one year old or the pathology develops in a severe form, urgent hospitalization is necessary in order to prevent complications. The first measure that adults should take is to provide the baby with the ability to breathe normally. For this, all the rooms are ventilated, the child is given a walk every day, if the temperature is not lower than -10 and not higher than +25. Coughing is not a reason to refuse to spend time on the street. True, contact with other children should be avoided, since the probability of transmission of an infectious agent is too high. If possible, active pastime should be avoided, as this increases the risk of a coughing fit. The child can not be scolded, punished, but will have to be protected from worries, stress, because crying will immediately provoke a cough.
For a quick recovery, you should drink warm, eat on a lightweight program, avoiding irritating mucous products. Exclude everything spicy, spicy, fatty, smoked, salty. During the disease, honey, chocolate, nuts are contraindicated. You will not be able to gnaw crackers.
Preparations: what will help?
Proper drug treatment is necessary if symptoms of pertussis are observed in children. The photo below shows the packaging of one of the most popular drugs, often prescribed by doctors with this diagnosis - Sumamed. This tool is one of the macrolide antibiotics. A good alternative is Wilprafen. The choice of a specific option remains with the attending physician. It is important to consider the individual characteristics of the body. True, there is one feature associated with the treatment of symptoms of whooping cough. The photo shows the drug, showing the maximum result in the catarrhal period - like all other antimicrobials. And this stage, as mentioned above, does not manifest itself as severe symptoms, so it is extremely difficult to suspect that such therapy is already needed. But at the subsequent stages, it makes no sense to use macrolides, they will not benefit from it, but it can harm the child’s body - the drugs weaken the immune system, which makes the baby less resistant to secondary bacterial infection.
With whooping cough, they can recommend a course of medicines against cough, but their effectiveness is quite low, it is extremely rare to stop cramps. You can use mucolytic drugs, expectorants - this increases the patency of the bronchi, reduces the risk of complications. The disease lasts a long time, which forces to replace drugs every two weeks, otherwise addiction is possible. Occasionally, drugs are prescribed to eliminate bronchospasm, but they also show only a weak effect. Appointment is made only if there is additional evidence.
What else will help?
Antihistamines can somewhat ease the course of whooping cough. The most popular names are Zirtek, Claritin. You can take various safe sedatives on plant components - motherwort, valerian rhizome. If a child is being treated in a hospital, more powerful sedatives, as well as drugs that prevent a convulsive condition, are often prescribed. In severe cases, oxygen therapy is indicated.
How to warn?
As with any other disease, the best treatment for whooping cough is effective prevention. The most productive option is vaccination. In our country, this vaccine is currently being given to everyone without fail. An exception is families in which parents consciously refused the child to undergo the procedure. In the absence of a timely delivered vaccine, the probability of infection is extremely high. This is most typical for active, social children, often in contact with other people. Since the number of refusals from vaccination has recently increased, at the same time, the number of diagnosed cases of the disease has increased dramatically, which means that the probability of contracting more and more.
With the correct formulation of the vaccine, a healthy child will not have any complications, the drug is considered safe, has undergone many tests, and its reliability is confirmed by many years of practice. Some contraindications to such injections are known. If you take them into account, the procedure does not initiate any negative consequences. As a rule, soon after the administration of the composition, the temperature rises, and the injection site is disturbed by mild pain - this is the norm. The minimum chance of such a negative response of the body, if you use the most modern purified medications. Vaccination can not provoke whooping cough, and the opinion that this is observed in practice is only a myth. A vaccine is a drug specially developed under clinical conditions; it does not contain live bacteria, so it is impossible to get sick.
Vaccination is carried out according to the plan, is included in the special national calendar of compulsory vaccinations. Getting an injection is completely free, available to everyone. Any citizen of the country has the right to such an injection. Do not neglect this measure, because the prevention of whooping cough is much simpler than its treatment.