The course of antibiotic treatment has been completed. The doctor states with satisfaction that the baby is healthy. But the state of health of the crumbs is far from ideal - his intestines "blow", gas leaves, his stomach hurts, he suffers from bouts of vomiting and diarrhea. Why this happens and what to do, as a rule, all parents with great experience know. But newly minted mums and dads are at a loss.
The answer lies in understanding the principle of the effect of antibiotics on the body.
These drugs do an excellent job with pathogenic bacteria and microbes, but at the same time they affect the beneficial microflora. Therefore, the balance in the child's body is disturbed. Unpleasant processes that cause discomfort are called dysbiosis.
You can find out what dysbiosis is in the video of Dr. Komarovsky:
Diarrhea and vomiting after taking antibiotics is a rather dangerous condition, especially for a very young child. With loose stools, huge amounts of nutrients, vitamins, trace elements and water are excreted from the body, already weakened by the previous disease and treatment, at an incredible speed. Dehydration occurs, the salt balance is disturbed. The kid certainly needs our adult help if something like this happened to him.
After taking antibiotics, diarrhea and vomiting can be caused by several reasons:
- Dysbacteriosis. In the baby's intestines, most of the beneficial microorganisms, which are responsible for normal digestion and stool, are "killed". This disorder occurs most often while taking antibiotics.
- Impaired motility of the gastrointestinal tract. Antibiotics have a rather strong effect on the muscular membrane of the esophagus. As a result, the ability to properly digest and absorb nutrients is impaired. This medicinal "indigestion" of the stomach has a direct effect on the stool.
- Child's allergic reaction to antibiotics. In the instructions for the use of most modern antibiotics, disorders of the functions of the gastrointestinal tract and allergic reactions are indicated as a side effect. In this case, the child is unlikely to have only diarrhea. If he is allergic to the drug, he is very likely to develop a rash, vomiting.
What antibiotics are more likely to cause diarrhea and allergies?
Troubles with stool and digestion are most often expected from antibiotics of the tetracycline group ("Doxycycline", "Tetracycline", "Metacyclin", etc.).
Taking antibiotics of the "Fluoroquinolones" family can turn into a real disaster for the child's body. These are the most toxic antibiotics, and the entire range of drugs is strictly forbidden to give to children.
Antibiotics of the penicillin group ("Amoxicillin", "Flemoxin", "Amoxiclav", "Flemoklav", and so on) quite often cause diarrhea. Even more often cause allergies in children. Antibiotics - macrolides ("Azithromycin", "Sumamed", "Erythromycin", "Clarithromycin") cause the least harm to the body.
When do side effects start to appear?
As a rule, problems with stool in a child begin even during the course of antibiotic treatment. But in some cases, after the end of taking antibacterial drugs, it may take several days before diarrhea appears.
You need to pay attention to several important symptoms:
- Pallor of the skin of a child
- Bloating
- Complaints of pain in the abdomen or stomach area
- Lack of appetite
- Drowsiness, lethargy
- Loose stools
- It is possible (but not necessary!) To increase the body temperature to 37-37.5 degrees.
Features of bowel movements in children
Loose stools by themselves do not always indicate ill health in children. For example, in babies under one year old, watery feces are a variant of the norm. It is important to pay attention to the number of bowel movements per day. A healthy child aged 0 to 1 month can poop up to 10 times a day. A baby from 1 to 3 months goes to the toilet 2 to 6 times a day. At 6 months, the baby empties the intestines 1-2 times a day. If your baby already has thick food in his diet, the stool will also be thicker. A one-year-old child can already get by with one big trip a day.
Pay close attention to the color of the contents of the diapers or pot. In crumbs up to 6 months old, feces can be yellow, greenish. In older children, it is slightly darker.
If the stool has become frequent while taking antibiotics (exceeding the specified norms), the smell is sour and unpleasant, the color has changed, this is a reason to consult a doctor.
Yes, diarrhea is not an independent disease, it is only a symptom of various disorders, but it can cause tremendous harm to the baby, and therefore it is better to consult a specialist and calmly start treatment.
Treating diarrhea and vomiting after taking antibiotics
It is necessary to treat diarrhea and vomiting that happened to the baby after taking antibiotics in stages. Each action must be consistent.
Restoration of water-salt balance in the body
With diarrhea or vomiting, the baby has already lost a certain amount of fluid, and therefore he will need to drink plenty of fluids. You should not give soda, store juices, milk. The child should drink tea, you can use herbal tea with chamomile or sage, dried fruit compote, jelly, and plenty of plain drinking water. Rehydration solutions are very helpful, they can be bought inexpensively at any pharmacy:
"Regidron" is a powder from which a drinking solution is made. It not only restores the balance of fluids and salts in the body, but also promotes detoxification, i.e. removes accumulated toxins. Dissolve 1 sachet in a liter of chilled boiled water. The solution should be given to the child from the very beginning of the diarrhea. The reception ends with the end of the diarrhea. If the child vomits, the solution of "Regidron" is given in small doses, often in a cool form. You can store the diluted composition in the refrigerator only for a day and no more.
"Humana Electrolyte" is a mixture from which solutions are made. Babies up to 3 years old - with fennel. For children who are 3 years old and older - with a banana. A bag of the mixture must be diluted with 250 mg. water. The solution can be taken either warm or cold. Children under one year old should be given 50-100 ml of "Humana Electrolyte" per 1 kilogram of the baby's weight per day. Children from 1 to 3 years old - 100-150 ml of the drug per 1 kilogram of the child's body weight. Children from 3 years old - 150 ml of the drug per 1 cell of body weight per day. Divide the total amount of the solution into 6-8 doses. It tastes quite pleasant, so there shouldn't be any difficulties during its intake.
Thickening of feces
This is the main stage of treatment. It starts right after you start restoring the water-salt balance in your baby's body. The most popular and optimal antidiarrheal drugs for children are Smecta and Enterosgel.
"Smecta" is a powder from which you can prepare a suspension with orange or vanilla flavor at home. Babies who are not yet one year old should be given 2 sachets of Smekty per day, after three days the dosage should be reduced to 1 sachet of medicine. For one-year-old children and older - 4 sachets of the drug per day for three days, and then reduce the dose to 2 sachets.
Enterosgel - this drug has not only antidiarrheal properties, but is also able to bind and remove toxins from the body, it improves the activity of the intestines, liver, kidneys and strengthens the immune system. The drug is available in the form of a gel for solution preparation and in the form of a white thick paste for oral administration. For babies up to one year old, one teaspoon of Enterosgel is divided into 4 doses. For crumbs up to 2 years old, 2 tablespoons of the drug are also divided into 4 doses. Children under 7 years old are given 1 teaspoon of pasta, but not more than 5 g. Schoolchildren from 7 to 14 years old - 2 dessert spoons, not more than 10 g.
When taking these drugs, it should be remembered that non-adherence to the dosage can not only cure diarrhea, but also lead to constipation. In addition, medications should not be given for bloody discharge from the anus, in the acute stage of gastric ulcer.
Microflora normalization
This is the third, and perhaps the longest, treatment for diarrhea after taking antibiotics. With the help of special preparations, new residents are artificially "populated" into the damaged intestines of the child - bacteria that are useful and necessary for him. It is better to abandon the independent choice of such medications, which the doctor should decide to give the child to restore order in the intestines. The following drugs are usually recommended for children:
Bifidumbacterin is a probiotic rich in live and active bifidobacteria. You can buy it in the form of rectal suppositories, tablets and dry matter. From birth, babies add the drug to the milk mixture or drinking water 1 sachet of dry mass 3 times a day. Children from 1 to 3 years old can be given 1 sachet 4 times a day. Children from 3 to 7 years old - the drug should be taken five times a day, 1 sachet. Children over 2 packages 4 times a day.
"Bifiform" is a probiotic with a high content of bifidobacteria, lactobacilli and B vitamins. Available in the form of sachets, chewable tablets, oily solution, as well as capsules and tablets. The sachets are mixed with food and water, chewable tablets can be given to the child as candy - they taste good. A suspension is prepared from the oil solution. The dosage and duration of treatment is determined by the doctor.
"Hilak Forte" are oral drops containing substrates of metabolic products. The child should take them before meals or directly during meals. Dissolve the drops in a drink, in a small amount of liquid. No need to add them to milk! "Hilak Forte" should not be given to infants, the drug is intended for children who have reached the age of 2 years. A single dosage is from 20 to 40 drops.
"Rotabiotic" - this drug not only restores the intestinal microflora, but also has a positive effect on the processes of food digestion and absorption of nutrients. Available in capsules. Children from 1 to 3 years old can take 1 capsule twice a day. Children from 3 to 12 years old also take 1 capsule, but already three times a day.
The course of restoration of intestinal microflora can sometimes take several months.
It should be remembered that treating diarrhea will require a special diet. Raw vegetables and sour fruits, especially citrus fruits, fried and salted, fatty meats should be excluded from the child's diet. Fermented milk products and milk should be given very carefully, and even then only after the acute stage of diarrhea and vomiting has been left behind. For babies - "artificial" during the first three days after the onset of diarrhea or vomiting, it is better to dilute the prepared adapted mixture with water by half. When the diarrhea stops, you can return to the usual proportions of the mixture and water.
In order to prevent severe dysbiosis, doctors always recommend starting taking probiotics at the same time as taking antibiotics. Even if an unwanted reaction does occur, it will be mild and short-lived.
About rehabilitation after antibiotics, Dr. Komarovsky is excellently told:
