Today, the world knows a million different diseases, most of which people have learned to fight successfully. Of course, in our life we encounter only some diseases. One such is Botkin's disease. How this ailment is transmitted, every mother should know how to treat and prevent it. After all, the infection often affects the child’s body.
What are hepatitis?
The liver is one of the main human organs. It synthesizes proteins and bile acids, carries out the accumulation and breakdown of glucose. The main function of the liver is a filter of all incoming substances. Of course, if the liver is broken, the whole human body suffers.
The causes of the disease of this organ can be several:
- Infections (hepatitis A, B, C, E, D).
- Diabetes.
- Long-term use of antibacterial drugs and other drugs.
- Alcohol abuse.
- Heredity.
- Ecology.
- Lifestyle and unacceptable working conditions.
Among liver diseases, there are:
- Viral hepatitis (A, B, C, etc.). Each form has its own developmental features, treatment methods and consequences. All forms of viral hepatitis are transmitted by contact and household, through semen, as well as from mother to child.
- Toxic hepatitis is a reaction to taking medication.
- Alcoholic hepatitis appears as a result of alcohol abuse.
All hepatitis except form C is treatable. Hepatitis C is cirrhosis of the liver. There is no cure for this ailment. A disease always ends in death.
Hepatitis A
Or as it is also called - Botkin's disease (in honor of the doctor who discovered the disease) - an acute viral disease that affects mainly the liver. The nervous, digestive system and kidneys also suffer.
The disease can be called an epidemic, outbreaks of which are characteristic of the countries of Africa, Asia, South America.
A large percentage of people with hepatitis A are children, adolescents, and the elderly. The main symptoms of Botkin's disease are icteric complexion, headaches, diarrhea. Hepatitis A is a treatable disease. It is enough to go to the hospital for help in a timely manner. Of course, there are fatal outcomes - 0.1 - 0.3%.
Causes of the disease
The virus that causes hepatitis A is very resistant to the environment. It has an acid-resistant shell, as a result of which the protective barrier of the stomach is not terrible for him. For a long time, hepatitis bacteria remain in the water. Therefore, the main cause of epidemics is contaminated sources of drinking water. Botkin's disease is also transmitted through the contact-household route, sometimes by airborne droplets, also through the blood. The virus can carry flies on itself. Bacteria, entering the body, are absorbed through the intestines into the bloodstream, after which they are carried throughout the body and affect the liver.
The incubation period is from 10 to 40 days, after which the first symptoms of the disease begin. Once having overcome jaundice, a person receives stable immunity for life. Such people can no longer be blood donors.
Symptoms of Botkin's disease
Hepatitis A can occur in the body in several forms: mild (most cases), moderate (about 30%) and severe (1-3%).
Depending on the form of the disease, the symptoms may also be different. Mainly:
- Increased body temperature, lethargy, fatigue.
- Nausea, vomiting, upset.
- Pain in the liver. When probing, this organ is noticeably enlarged.
- Disturbed sleep, lack of appetite.
- Perhaps the occurrence of a runny nose and cough.
- The skin and membranes of the eyes acquire a characteristic yellowish color. The icteric period lasts from three to six weeks.
- Urine becomes dark, feces, on the contrary, become discolored.
Often the signs of the disease are perceived as an ordinary cold (flu, SARS), and not Botkin's disease. Symptoms worsen, jaundice appears, and only then do patients go to the doctor.
On average, the disease lasts about forty days. The course of the disease depends on age, immunity, concomitant diseases and treatment methods.
The one-year-old children and the elderly are hard to tolerate the infection. Therefore, everyone should know what Botkin’s disease is, how it is transmitted, and what symptoms it has. After all, often the disease affects entire families. Timely diagnosis can protect against severe forms of the disease.
Complications after hepatitis A
Hepatitis A, unlike its other forms, is completely treatable. After therapy, liver function is restored. People gain lifelong immunity.
In rare cases, Botkin's disease causes health problems. Causes, symptoms of complications can only be associated with non-compliance with the doctor's prescriptions, violation of bed rest and improper diet.
Patients may complain of continued pain, vomiting for another two months after therapy. This is normal, do not panic.
You can minimize the complications and consequences of hepatitis with the help of proper diet.
- Food should be consumed in small portions, but often.
- During the disease, a person loses a large amount of vitamins, so be sure to replenish them. The diet should be fresh vegetables, fruits, juices, dairy products.
- It is forbidden to eat fatty, salty, smoked, pickled and spicy foods.
- "Unloading" days are welcome. For this, dairy products, vegetables and fruits are well suited.
- Fans of alcoholic beverages will have to give them up for a while.
- All foods must be thoroughly processed.
How to treat Botkin's disease?
First of all, to establish an accurate diagnosis, you should go to the hospital. Only a doctor, after examining and passing all the tests, can give an opinion to the patient. Given the fact that Botkin’s disease does not always have pronounced symptoms, it is impossible to talk about the presence of infection in the body without additional diagnosis. For research it is necessary: blood (general and biochemical analysis is performed), urine and feces. If class M antibodies were detected in the biomaterials, this indicates the presence of infection in the body. Class G antibodies - immunity to the disease.
Determine how to treat Botkin's disease, symptoms. Treatment of mild and moderate forms of the disease can be done at home. The main thing is bed rest and diet. An important role is played by drinking, which is necessary to reduce intoxication. Therapy of severe forms of hepatitis A is carried out in a stationary way, in the infectious wards.
In order to improve liver function, in addition to vitamins, specific preparations such as "Gepabene", "Essentiale" can be prescribed.
Diet No. 5 for liver diseases
It is no secret that proper and healthy food is the best assistant in the fight against diseases and infections. For each type of disease, there are therapeutic nutrition schemes developed by the Soviet nutritionist Mikhail Pevzner.
Diet number 5 is designed specifically to improve liver function. The essence of the diet is to limit the use of fatty and harmful foods. So, for the duration of the disease, you need to exclude:
- Smoked, fatty, marinades, pickles and offal.
- Fresh pastries and pastries.
- Spicy seasonings and spices.
- Carbonated drinks, strong coffee and alcohol.
Allowed:
- Yesterday's bread, dried flour products.
- Cereals, soups, cereals.
- Vegetables fruits.
- Low-fat dairy products.
- Lean meat and broths.
- Teas, juices, coffee with milk.
- Vitamins
Better to cook food for a couple. This saves a large number of useful trace elements.
Symptoms of Botkin's disease in children
Botkin's disease refers to acute intestinal infections. You can get an illness through food, water, as well as from infected patients.
The incubation period averages 28 days, after which the disease itself begins, which consists of three stages: preicteric, icteric, and the recovery period. Symptoms of each period are different.
At the first stage of the disease, the child becomes very moody, loses his appetite. Sleep may be disturbed, temperature may rise. Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea appear. The appearance of cough and runny nose is also characteristic of this period.
Symptoms of Botkin's disease in adults and in children at first are the same and can often be mistaken for another disease (for example, flu). When the icteric period begins - the patient's condition improves. However, yellowness appears on the eye membranes and skin. Liver pain may also occur. At this time, the patient begins to perceive the symptoms of Botkin's disease correctly and seeks help from a doctor.
The recovery period is characterized by the gradual extinction of all symptoms. Liver functions are restored, the patient's condition stabilizes. Sometimes nausea and pain can persist for a month or two after recovery.
Given how complex Botkin's disease can be, how the pathogen is transmitted, treatment is best done in hospitals. This applies in particular to families with small children or the elderly.
Botkin's disease and pregnancy
Botkin's disease is a very dangerous disease for expectant mothers. If most people with hepatitis A suffer a mild to moderate form of the disease, then pregnant women almost always have a severe form.
Botkin's disease during pregnancy causes liver dystrophy. The infection also crosses the placenta to the baby. Children born from infected mothers often have different defects and pathologies. A woman herself can die during childbirth. This is because the disease affects blood coagulation. Cesarean section is also contraindicated.
At all stages of pregnancy, Botkin’s disease is the cause of miscarriages, premature births and stillbirths . Symptoms, treatment and signs of Botkin's disease should be known to every woman. Appropriate preventive measures will help her protect herself from the sad consequences of this ailment during pregnancy.
Hepatitis A Prevention
Of all types of hepatitis, it is most easy to prevent infection with hepatitis A (Botkin's disease), which is transmitted by the fecal-oral route. To do this, it is enough to follow the rules of personal hygiene, as well as educate people about this disease.
Symptoms of Botkin's disease can be different, but the main ones are jaundice, vomiting, headaches and diarrhea. If people sought help in a timely manner, the number of patients would probably be significantly reduced. After all, the incubation period of hepatitis A lasts long enough, and all this time a person has already been a carrier of the pathogen.
To protect yourself and loved ones from this ailment, you should follow these simple rules:
- Always and everywhere you need to wash your hands with soap.
- Handle food carefully. Vegetables and fruits should be washed only under running water.
- It is better to boil tap water. Pathogens are resistant to the aquatic environment, and boiling kills them in a matter of minutes.
- Food should be bought in specialized stores, and not in spontaneous markets.
- If possible, it is better to be vaccinated against hepatitis A.
Be healthy!
“Botkin’s disease, symptoms, treatment, complications” is a topic that everyone should be familiar with. The cause of many diseases and infections is ignorance!
When a person is aware, consults a doctor in a timely manner, then there will be less complications. It should be remembered that severe forms of hepatitis A can cause cirrhosis and liver cancer, although this happens very rarely.