Signs of typhus in babies

This is an automatically translated article.

The article was professionally consulted by Specialist Doctor II Le Thanh Cam - Department of Pediatrics - Neonatology - Vinmec Danang International General Hospital. Uncle has 15 years of experience in diagnosis & treatment of pediatric diseases; She used to work at the Pediatric Department - Da Nang Hospital and Da Nang Center for Obstetrics and Gynecology. Her strength is diagnosis and treatment of pediatric diseases; resuscitation, pediatric emergency.
Typhus in infants is a common disease in children from 5 to 36 months old - when the child's resistance is still weak. The disease is usually harmless and goes away with rest and adequate medication. In rare cases, the disease can cause high fever and lead to dangerous complications.

1. What is typhus in children?

Typhus is a condition in which a fever and small raised or raised spots appear, usually in young children. The disease is usually harmless and will go away with rest and adequate medication. In rare cases, the disease can cause a high fever and lead to complications.
There are many types of typhus, but the two most common are scarlet fever and scarlet fever:
Rubella virus rash (rosacea): The rubella rash is usually thicker and lighter in color than the measles rash. The virus that causes rubella is quite benign in children but very dangerous for pregnant women. Measles rash (erythema): The measles rash is characterized by a papule-like rash (a raised rash on the skin), which when gone will leave a very characteristic dark spot on the skin often called "tiger stripes". The cause of the disease is the transmission of the virus from person to person through bodily contact with an infected person or their personal items. For example, a healthy child can get the virus if he shares a cup with a child with typhus. However, the disease is not transmitted through contact.

2. Dangerous complications of typhus

Usually, typhus in children rarely causes any significant complications. If there are no other illnesses, usually children and adults with typhus recover quickly. However, for children with typhus, whose immune system is weak, there may be some complications:
Seizures : Infants with typhus can have seizures if the temperature rises suddenly. suddenly. When a child has a seizure, the child may lose consciousness, show signs of jerking limbs, and eyes roll up for a few minutes. In that case, adults should take the child to a doctor right away. But fortunately, febrile seizures usually pose no danger to children. New typhus: Children who have received a bone marrow or other organ transplant may develop a new typhus disease or a relapse of an old illness. In this case, the child will often have more severe pain and take longer to recover. Other complications: In some cases, if the child is not cared for and treated properly, the disease can leave serious complications such as causing pneumonia, otitis media, myocarditis, decreased urination. Severe glomerulonephritis and bleeding, meningitis.

3. Signs of typhus in babies

Rubella virus rash (rosacea): A rash that begins on the face and then spreads to the legs, the rash usually lasts about 3 days. The rubella rash is usually thicker and lighter in color than the measles rash, may be accompanied by swelling of the posterior ear, cervical and suboccipital lymph nodes. Although the virus that causes rubella is quite benign in children, it is very dangerous for pregnant women.
Measles virus rash (erythema): When newly infected children often have a fever, when the signs of fever decrease, a rash will appear, first behind the ears, then spreading to the face, then gradually spreading to the chest and abdomen and out the whole body. Measles rash is characterized by a papule rash (a raised rash on the skin), when it disappears, it will leave a very characteristic bruise on the skin commonly known as "tiger skin". In addition, there are some accompanying symptoms of typhus in infants such as runny nose, cough or red eyes. Measles virus can cause many dangerous complications for children, especially pneumonia and viral encephalitis.

4. Prevention and care when children have typhus fever

4.1. Caring for a child with typhus

First, when the baby has typhus fever, parents should take the child to see a doctor for the best diagnosis and treatment. After that, the child can be cared for and treated at home as follows:
Reduce typhus fever, reduce cough in children:
When your baby has a high fever during the illness, you need to pay attention to reducing the fever immediately. then for children, avoiding unwanted serious complications. For infants with typhus (from 0 to 6 months old): You should not self-medicate with fever-reducing medicine for children, but need to see a doctor and follow the treatment instructions. For children over 6 months old: If the child is just tired and refuses to eat, there is no need to give the child fever-reducing medicine. In case the child has a fever that is too high, > 39 degrees Celsius, the child will be given medication according to the doctor's prescription/prescription. In addition to medication, you can use simple ways to reduce fever safely for young children such as warming the child with a towel dipped in warm water (avoid using cold water), wearing cool clothes for the child, using a blanket or using a blanket. thick for children. Give your child herbal cough suppressants. Decongest the child's nose:
Clear the child's nose with dilute saline and a soft tissue. This is a way to make it easier for babies to eat and drink breast milk. Child's eating and living regimen:
Need to breastfeed more than usual, divided into several meals. During the treatment of infants with typhus, you can bathe the child clean every day, do not abstain from the wind or eat. The habit of abstaining from wind and water by covering the child, and not cleaning the body will make it difficult for the child to reduce fever and easily convulse due to high fever. Failure to clean the body will make children uncomfortable, prone to skin infections and pneumonia complications. But parents should not let the child catch a cold. Clean clothes and personal items used by children such as blankets, pillows, towels, etc. From the onset of the disease until the illness is completely cured, you need to let the child rest in bed. The living environment also needs to be clean, cool, avoid moisture, secret and easy to breed bacteria. In necessary cases, you can consult more doctors or health consultants.

In mild cases, you can monitor and combine treatment at home. However, you should take the child to the hospital for the best treatment, minimizing the risks to the child when encountering the following emergencies:
The child has a high fever > 39.4 degrees Celsius The child has a high fever, temperature cannot be controlled despite taking fever-reducing medicine After 3 days of treatment, the baby has a fever with no positive changes For children with weak immune systems, children under 6 months of age Parents suspect that the child is lost water from diarrhea. As a key area of ​​Vinmec Medical system, Pediatrics Department always brings satisfaction to customers and is highly appreciated by industry experts with:
Gathering a team of leading pediatricians: including leading experts with high professional qualifications (professors, associate professors, doctorates, masters), experienced, worked at major hospitals such as Bach Mai, 108.. Doctors All are well-trained, professional, with a mind - range, understanding young psychology. In addition to domestic pediatric specialists, the Department of Pediatrics also has the participation of foreign experts (Japan, Singapore, Australia, USA) who are always pioneers in applying the latest and most effective treatment regimens. . Comprehensive services: In the field of Pediatrics, Vinmec provides a series of continuous medical examination and treatment services from Newborn to Pediatric and Vaccine,... according to international standards to help parents take care of their baby's health from birth to childhood. from birth to adulthood Specialized techniques: Vinmec has successfully deployed many specialized techniques to make the treatment of difficult diseases in Pediatrics more effective: neurosurgery - skull surgery, stem cell transplantation. blood in cancer treatment. Professional care: In addition to understanding children's psychology, Vinmec also pays special attention to the children's play space, helping them to have fun and get used to the hospital's environment, cooperate in treatment, improve the efficiency of medical treatment.

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