Many children are hospitalized with meningitis

Every day, the pediatric department of Bach Mai Hospital (Hanoi) has 7-8 children diagnosed with meningitis, increasing more than the same period last year.

Taking care of children treated at Pediatrics Department, Bach Mai Hospital, Hanoi, Mr. Quoc Hung felt lucky to have taken his child to the examination and early detection of meningitis . After only one day of hospitalization, his son had no fever, headache, sometimes pain in his back due to a doctor for cerebrospinal fluid.

Before that, she returned home to play, on May 31, Hanoi began to develop symptoms of vomiting, headache, and pain. Thinking that the child might fall, he brought him to the hospital for examination, the results of the tomography did not detect the disease. Visiting Bach Mai Hospital again, he was surprised when the doctor diagnosed that the child could have meningitis and indicated a cerebrospinal fluid for examination.

"When the results confirmed that my child had meningitis, I could not believe it. The doctor said that thanks to his early detection, the treatment was not difficult, it is likely not to leave sequelae" , Mr. Hung said. .

Baby suffering from treatment of encephalitis at Bach Mai Hospital.(Photo: NP).

Doctor Nguyen Thanh Nam, acting Head of Pediatrics, Hospital, said that every day, about 7-8 children come to the clinic to be diagnosed with meningitis, more than the same period last year.Most cases of viral disease. If the disease is diagnosed early, it is easy to leave sequelae. Common manifestations of the disease are fever, vomiting, headache; Older children can stiffen, heavier than babies, coma.

According to doctors, encephalitis, meningitis is quite dangerous for children, can lead to death. If not detected early, treated promptly, children may suffer from mental sequelae, affecting intellectual development, poor awareness. The disease is in season so parents need to be alert when their child has fever, vomiting and headache.

According to Dr. Nguyen Tien Dung, former head of the Pediatrics Department (Bach Mai Hospital), is now starting the season of viral meningitis so parents need to be very alert. The disease is most common in children aged 2-14 years, clinical manifestations are varied and vary by age. Initially, children often have fever, some headaches, vomiting of unknown causes . Children in a fever with headache, vomiting are not suspicious, but with the fever gone and still have these symptoms, it may be an early sign of the disease. Severe cases of seizures, neurological disorders such as lethargy, fatigue, lethargy, heaviness are coma.

Pathogens may be caused by Japanese encephalitis virus, intestinal viruses or complications of infectious diseases such as mumps, chickenpox, mouth and foot .

Regardless of fever, vomiting, headache, unknown cause, the doctor recommends early cerebrospinal fluid testing. Before my parents were afraid for my child to have cerebrospinal fluid removed, but now the technique is better, the needle is small so he often has less pain, the rate of getting the epidemic is higher than before but it is safe. Detecting disease early, curing in time, the treatment effect is higher, most of them are out of the week, 10 days old. If not treated early will leave many serious sequelae such as cerebral palsy, leg paralysis, seizures, deafness, poor memory, affecting learning outcomes .

Viral meningitis does not require antibiotics, symptomatic treatment, anti-cerebral edema, rehydration, electrolytes, antipyretic, anticonvulsant .

Doctors recommend that currently the season, parents see a high fever continuously for unknown reasons until the third day does not decrease, it should be taken to the hospital for examination. Besides, children with fever with vomiting, headache, convulsions, fatigue, sleepiness, poor eating . should also go to the hospital. To prevent disease, parents need to take their children to get a full Japanese encephalitis vaccine. In order to prevent intestinal virus infection, attention should be paid to food hygiene and safety issues, clean processing, ripe eating and hand washing before eating.