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Acute Gastroenteritis
Symptoms and Treatment of Acute Gastroenteritis
Acute gastroenteritis is usually caused by exposure to cold or improper diet, also known as gastroenteric cold or bacterial enteritis, with common symptoms including abdominal pain and diarrhea. The abdominal pain caused by gastroenteric cold is usually not very severe, and diarrhea is mainly watery. It often accompanies symptoms of upper respiratory tract infections, such as fever, chills, sore throat, and general body aches. Treatment mainly focuses on antiviral medications, combined with astringent hemostatic drugs, and a light diet is recommended. Bacterial enteritis caused by improper diet often leads to severe abdominal pain, and stools can be watery or mucous, and may even include pus and blood. The treatment for this condition primarily involves antibacterial therapy, such as cephalosporins or quinolones, and it is also important to maintain a light diet. (The use of medications should be under the guidance of a doctor.)
Where to apply moxibustion for acute gastroenteritis?
Acute enteritis can be caused either by exposure to pathogenic wind, cold, and dampness, or by unclean diet and excessive consumption of raw and cold food. At this time, we would choose some acupoints with good effects, such as the Liangqiu point on our feet, for moxibustion. The Liangqiu point is mainly used to treat some acute conditions and is considered an Xi (cleft) point. During moxibustion, we can use either suspended moxibustion or ginger-separated moxibustion, both of which are effective. Additionally, we can also choose the Tianshu point on our abdomen. The Tianshu point is located on the abdomen and is the Mu (alarm) point of the large intestine; it can regulate acute gastroenteritis. Typically, we use suspended moxibustion for the Tianshu point. If the cold is particularly severe, we can also slice a thin piece of ginger, place it on top, and perform ginger-separated moxibustion. This helps to warm the meridians, dispel cold, relieve pain, and regulate gastroenteritis.
Is acute gastroenteritis a serious danger?
Acute gastroenteritis is quite common in everyday life. If the symptoms are mild, the harm is not particularly great, and symptoms can include abdominal pain, diarrhea, and physical weakness. By using medication, recovery can generally be gradual over 2-3 days. If the symptoms are more severe, such as long-term recurrent diarrhea, it can lead to body dehydration, sunken eye sockets, dizziness, and headaches. Further dehydration can cause shock symptoms, such as decreased blood pressure and a thin pulse. It is necessary to visit a hospital in a timely manner, hydrate according to the type of dehydration, and treat with intestinal solidifiers, antidiarrheal, and antibiotic medications. (Please follow medical advice when using medications.)
Why does acute gastroenteritis cause dizziness?
Acute gastroenteritis is characterized by symptoms such as vomiting, nausea, or diarrhea. If the diarrhea is severe, there can be significant bodily dehydration, manifesting as fatigue or dizziness. It is important to promptly replenish body fluids and undergo infusion therapy. At the same time, proactive use of antibiotics and antidiarrheal medications is advised. The general treatment period lasts 3-5 days. After recovery, attention should be given to dietary adjustments, incorporating fresh green vegetables. It is advisable to eat some fruit and have meals regularly and in controlled quantities, while reducing consumption of spicy, greasy, and irritating foods. Appropriate outdoor exercises should be performed to help regulate gastrointestinal function. (Please follow the doctor's advice regarding medication use.)
How many days does acute gastroenteritis last?
The course of acute gastroenteritis generally lasts about 7 to 10 days. Patients typically have an acute onset, presenting with abdominal discomfort, nausea, vomiting, and abnormal stools. The abdominal discomfort is usually centered around the navel or the lower abdomen, predominantly characterized by intermittent cramping pain. Vomiting usually occurs more severely after eating and generally involves expelling stomach contents, without accompanying hematemesis or bile, and recurs frequently. Abnormal stools commonly involve more frequent bowel movements, colloquially known as diarrhea. Along with an increase in stool frequency, the stool tends to be looser in texture, and some patients may have watery stools, thus typically it presents as an acute episode. General treatment involves diet adjustment and, when necessary, the addition of some oral medications. Generally, conditions gradually improve over about 7 to 10 days. (Please take medication under the guidance of a professional physician.)
What causes acute gastroenteritis?
Acute gastroenteritis is a common and frequently occurring disease during the summer and autumn seasons, because the temperature is very high during this period, making food easily spoil. Additionally, consuming cold drinks and using air conditioning can easily lead to catching a cold. Therefore, the most common causes of acute gastroenteritis are likely due to catching cold or improper diet. Abdominal pain and diarrhea are the main symptoms, and they vary slightly. If the acute gastroenteritis is caused by bacterial infection, the abdominal pain and diarrhea can be quite severe. The diarrhea can be watery, or it can be mucous-like or even dysenteric. For gastroenteric flu, the abdominal pain is generally not so severe, and the stools are mostly loose watery stools.
Does acute gastroenteritis cause constipation?
Acute gastroenteritis refers to acute inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract, characterized by abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting. This condition does not involve constipation. In cases of mild diarrhea caused by acute gastroenteritis, the general condition is good, with fewer than ten bowel movements, and the stool sometimes appears like egg drop soup. For more severe diarrhea, there might be more than ten bowel movements per day, and treatment should primarily focus on antidiarrheal, pain relief, and antiemetic medications. It is also important to rest adequately, hydrate promptly, and follow a diet of eating small, frequent meals. If the condition is severe, treatment might involve gastrointestinal decompression and parenteral nutrition.
How long to rehydrate for acute gastroenteritis
Acute gastroenteritis is relatively common in clinical settings. Generally, if patients receive fluid therapy, it may be appropriate for about five to seven days. For treating acute gastroenteritis with fluid therapy, symptomatic treatment is typically chosen, including drugs that protect the intestinal mucosa, stop diarrhea, and regulate the intestinal flora. Of course, if the patient develops a fever, a small dose of anti-infection treatment may be appropriately added, but the treatment course should not be too long, generally three to five days would be suitable. Of course, we generally consider acute gastroenteritis to be a self-limiting disease. Patients can exhibit symptoms such as abdominal pain, bloating, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, typically frequent watery stools, but without bloody stools. Therefore, treatment is mainly symptomatic, so patients should not worry too much. (Use of medications should be under the guidance of a doctor.)
Where to massage for acute gastroenteritis?
Acute gastroenteritis is a common clinical symptom, and we can usually alleviate this clinical symptom through massage. For the massage, we can choose some acupoints on the abdomen, such as Zhongwan, Xiawan, Liangqiu, and the Tianshu points beside the navel for massage. The massage technique should go from light to heavy. If it’s difficult to massage on the stomach, we can choose some acupoints on the distal limbs, including Zusanli, Liangqiu, Shang Juxu, and Xia Juxu, which are very good for relieving acute gastroenteritis. The duration for the massage at each acupoint is about 2-3 minutes. After the massage, we can further choose other acupoints based on differentiation; for example, if the person has excessive liver heat, the Taichong acupoint can be selected for massage to relieve some of the clinical symptoms of acute gastroenteritis.
How to treat acute gastroenteritis?
Acute gastroenteritis is quite urgent and is characterized by significant nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. The treatment principle involves bed rest and symptomatic use of antiemetic, antispasmodic, antidiarrheal, and rehydrating medications. For milder cases, oral rehydration solutions can be consumed. If persistent vomiting occurs with obvious dehydration, it is timely to administer intravenous fluids to replenish relevant electrolytes, and, if necessary, inject drugs for antispasmodic and antiemetic purposes; For infectious diarrhea, sensitive antibiotics can be chosen. During treatment, it is important to drink water properly, eat vegetables, stay hydrated, eat smaller and more frequent meals, and avoid spicy and greasy foods.