Diarrhoea illness Flashcards
what is dysentery?
infection of the intestines resulting in pain and often bloody/mucoid diarrhoea
what is gastroenteritis?
inflammation of the stomach/intestines causing pain, diarrhoea and vomiting
what defences within the GI tract help prevent pathogens from colonising?
stomach acid
intestinal commensal bacteria
lymphoid tissue - deposits throughout the GI tract such as payers patches
name 3 pathogens which stay within the gut lumen and cause GI symptoms.
rotavirus
norovirus
cholera
what pathogen is responsible for causing travellers diarrhoea?
E.coli (enterotoxigenic)
what pathogen can colonise due to antibiotic overuse?
clostridium difficile
how can someone become infected with campylobacter?
contaminated chicken
what syndrome is campylobacter associated with?
gillian barre syndrome
what syndrome is E.coli 0157 associated with?
haemolytic uraemia syndrome
what antibiotics have a high risk of causing clostridium difficile infection?
4 C's clarithromycin co-amoxiclav cefriaxone ciproflaxacin
what are the complications of clostridium difficile if it isn’t treated?
toxic megacolon
perforation
death
what is the treatment for clostridium difficile infection?
oral metronidazole or vancomycin
what virus commonly affects young children?
norovirus
what investigations are carried out to determine cause of the infection and what specific pathogens do they test for?
blood cultures (campylobacter , salmonella) stool culture (bacterial pathogens) toxin testing (clostridium. difficile) stool microscopy (parasitic causes) viral PCR/DNA (noro / rotavirus)
if a patient comes into A and E which a short history of diarrhoea and stomach cramps, what are the main questions you have to ask in the history?
recent travel
consumption of food/drink in the past few days
recent medication use/change
the exact quality and quantity of his stool e.g. blood, mucous, consistency, no. of motions
