Adenoviruses are a group of viruses that primarily affects the eyes, respiratory system, urinary tract, lymphatic system, and intestines.
Adenovirus infection practically does not occur in adults, but affects children, especially younger and infants. The highest susceptibility in children, whose age is from 6 months. up to 3 years. By the age of 5, almost all of them, at least once, suffer from this infection, and half of them suffer it again.
The adenovirus carrier is a sick person. Infection is transmitted by food, airborne droplets, water, or contact-household transmission. The disease can occur at any time of the year, but it rises more often in the cold seasons. However, conjunctivitis and conjunctival fever occurs in children in older groups in the summer.
Adenovirus infection is very quickly transmitted from one patient to another - a little contact is enough for this. One sick child can trigger an outbreak in the school, hospital, boarding school, summer camp. The incubation period of the disease can last from 2 to 14 days, on average - 5-8 days.
Adenovirus infection: symptoms
The disease often resembles a common cold: the patient is shivering, muscle pains, general weakness, poor appetite, and headache appear. The febrile period can last from 6-7 to 14 days. The initial symptoms of infection are: a gradual increase in temperature to 38-39C, nasal congestion, sore throat, runny nose, conjunctivitis, lymphadenitis (enlarged lymph nodes). Sometimes laryngitis, tracheitis, bronchitis and even pneumonia can develop.
Adenovirus infection most often enters the body of the child through the upper respiratory tract, sometimes through the intestines or conjunctiva of the eyes. Inflammatory processes are characterized by abundant discharge from the nose, which eventually become mucopurulent. The child begins to breathe with his mouth open. The back wall of the pharynx and palatine tonsils redden and swell. Often the disease is accompanied by a wet cough. Young children are prone to more severe and persistent coughing.
A very characteristic symptom of infection is conjunctivitis. This can happen on the first day of illness. First, one eye is affected, followed by the second on the second day. Children usually complain of pain, lacrimation and burning in the eyes, a foreign body sensation in them.
Intestinal inflammation - gastroenteritis - is manifested by diarrhea, intestinal colic, vomiting, fever and headache.
Urinary tract infection is expressed in frequent urges to urinate, a feeling of pain and burning sensation, and the appearance of blood in the urine.
With adenovirus infection, cases of moderate enlargement of the cervical and abdominal lymph nodes are quite common. The enlargement of the abdominal nodes is manifested by paroxysmal abdominal pain, sometimes severe, so to make the correct diagnosis it is necessary to exclude the possibility of acute appendicitis.
Adenovirus infection: treatment
The duration of adenovirus infection can be quite long. Typically, the temperature normalizes to 5-7 days, but can last 2, or even 3 weeks. Treatment of the patient always depends on the severity of the manifestations of the disease. If the disease is relatively easy, then hospitalization is not required. It is enough to observe bed rest and carry out local treatment: take funds that alleviate the symptoms of the disease, antihistamines, multivitamins. For conjunctivitis, oxolinic ointment or florenal ointment is used, for instillation - 0.2% deoxyribonuclease solution.
In severe cases, you should contact your doctor. Only he can prescribe the right treatment based on the results of various tests. Adenovirus infection can be dangerous with subsequent complications of the disease, such as sinusitis, otitis media, or pneumonia. Therefore, the treatment of the disease must be taken seriously.