Contents:
- Medical Video: Antibiotics & your baby: what you need to know
- Overview of diarrhea in Indonesian children
- When can parents give antibiotics for diarrhea children?
- Tips for caring for children with diarrhea
Medical Video: Antibiotics & your baby: what you need to know
Babies and toddlers often experience diarrhea. But that does not mean you can underestimate this digestive tract disease. Diarrhea can cause health problems that are more dangerous if not handled properly. Children with diarrhea are usually caused by viral, bacterial or parasitic infections. So, can you give antibiotics for a child's diarrhea medication?
Overview of diarrhea in Indonesian children
Diarrhea is characterized by the frequency of bowel movements more than three times a day with a liquid stool texture.
Research published by the American Journal of Epidemiology shows that the height of a child affected by diarrhea at the age of 6 months 2 years is 2.5 cm shorter than other children his age is healthy. This height shrinkage can be a permanent problem if diarrhea is not treated properly.
Moreover, according to 2007 Health Ministry Riskesdas data, diarrhea is the number one cause of death in infants (31.4%) and toddlers (25.26%) in Indonesia. Diarrhea was ranked second as the cause of child mortality worldwide.
When can parents give antibiotics for diarrhea children?
As mentioned above, diarrhea is generally caused by bacterial, viral, or parasitic infections that attack the digestive tract. But before giving a child's antibiotics for diarrhea medication, you should first pay attention to the symptoms of the diarrhea.
Diarrhea caused by bacteria or parasites usually shows symptoms of liquid stool bleeding due to inflammation of the intestine. Meanwhile, diarrhea caused by a virus also results in liquid textured stool, but does not bleed because inflammation does not occur.
However, it is actually quite difficult to be able to determine what causes diarrhea just by seeing the visible symptoms. For a more definitive diagnosis, take the child to the doctor for examination and sampling. Laboratory tests can accurately determine what causes diarrhea.
When examined by a doctor, a child's faecal sample of diarrhea due to bacteria or parasites can be found in the presence of leukocytes (white blood cells). Conversely, diarrhea caused by a virus does not show leukocytes in the stool sample.
When doctors know that the cause of diarrhea in children is a bacterial infection, then the doctor will prescribe antibiotics to cure the disease. Because antibiotics are anti-bacterial, viral infections cannot be treated by antibiotics. Some parasites that cause diarrhea can be treated with pediatric antibiotics, especially if caused by the parasite Giardia intestinalis. If a child's diarrhea is caused by another type of parasitic infection, the doctor will prescribe another medication.
Therefore, consult with your doctor first about the condition of your child.
Tips for caring for children with diarrhea
Diarrhea often causes dehydration, especially in infants and toddlers. Dehydration is even more prone to occur if the child also has a high fever during diarrhea. Dehydration is characterized by eyes that look concave or skin that is not elastic when pinched.
In addition to providing diarrhea medication for children according to the doctor's instructions, parents must ensure that children continue to get enough fluid to avoid dehydration. Give water or electrolyte drinks, but don't give soda or fruit juice.
If diarrhea children are dehydrated, they must be treated within 4-6 hours. Your child can be given drinking ORS or intravenously at the doctor.
