Irritable Bowel Syndrome in Children
One of the most urgent problems of modern gastroenterology is irritable bowel syndrome in children. This syndrome is nothing but the emergence of certain disorders in the function of the intestine and proceeding without structural changes in the intestinal mucosa.
As for children, they have this disease due to the presence of violations in the psychological, biological and social spheres of life. The mechanism of this syndrome in children is:
- , the appearance of changes in visceral sensitivity, as well as in the motor activity of the intestine;
- presence of the process of cooperation of two body systems: immune and nervous.
Symptoms, causes, diagnosis and treatment of the disease
Back in 1978, the scientist A. P. Manning identified the main symptoms of irritable bowel, which were called "Manning criteria" in honor of its creator, and serve to this day. These include:
- pain in the lower abdomen, which pass after defecation;
- frequent stool beginning, which is accompanied by the onset of pain;
- attack of pain, accompanied by the appearance of a loose stool;
- abdominal bloat determined visually;
- presence of mucus in the stool;
- sensation of incomplete emptying of the intestine.
As for the clinical manifestations of irritable bowel syndrome, they can be expressed: in the prevalence of diarrhea, with the predominance of pain and the presence of bloating and with the predominance of constipation.
The reasons for the formation of this syndrome are a huge number of them:
- lowering the threshold of perception of pain;
- previous dysentery;
- occurrence of psychosocial stress in a child;
- received a physical injury;
- hereditary factor;
- suffered severe shocks.
Based on this, it follows that irritable bowel syndrome is not a pathology of the gastrointestinal tract and not a disease of the nervous system or psyche, but a neuropsychological state of a person that is formed under extreme social conditions and is accompanied by an increase in the perception and reactivity of the organism.
Diagnosis of this disease is carried out exclusively on the evaluation of complaints and according to the criteria of Manning and Roman criteria. Since the symptoms of the syndrome are often similar to the symptoms of other diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, you need to study the assessment of the patient's pains as closely as possible. In irritable bowel syndrome, pain has a wide range of intensity and can range from the presence of mild discomfort to a cramping, intolerable with increasing pain intensity. Often, the localization of pain is located in the lower abdomen, but it is possible that it can be found in any other area of the abdominal cavity. A characteristic feature of these pains is their appearance after eating accompanied by bloating, increased intestinal peristalsis and the appearance of diarrhea. The pain passes after defecation or the escape of gases.
The treatment of this disease is rather complicated, and involves two stages: a primary course of treatment lasting 6-8 weeks and basic therapy for 1-3 months. It is very important to normalize the mode and nature of the patient's diet. If the disease occurs with the dominance of constipation, then it is necessary to enrich the diet with cellulose, which is found in wholemeal bread, vegetables and fruits. If diarrhea dominates, then it is necessary to exclude fat and gas-forming food from the baby's nutrition. As for medicines, imodium, espumizan, smecta are used. To reduce the contractions of the smooth muscles of the intestinal wall, antispasmodics are prescribed in the form of meteorospasm, mebeverin, but-shpa. If the cause of this disease is psychological soil, then antidepressants are needed. Antibiotics are categorically prohibited in the treatment of this syndrome.
