Related articles: Enteritis
Definition
Enteritis is an inflammation that affects the small intestine.
The causes of the disorder can be of various types.
Most often, acute enteritis is infectious, although it may also occur following the ingestion of drugs and toxic substances. Among the pathogens most involved are viruses (such as rotavirus, adenovirus, enterovirus and norovirus) and bacteria (including salmonella, staphylococci, streptococci, Escherichia coli and toxins ingested with contaminated food); less often, enteritis is caused by pathogenic fungi or other intestinal parasites.
Chronic enteritis can instead be associated with other conditions, such as food allergies, celiac disease and giardiasis. Inflammation of the small intestine can also be caused by drug taking, radiation therapy or some inflammatory bowel diseases, such as Crohn's disease.
Most common symptoms and signs *
- Alve alterations
- Anorexia
- Asthenia
- Bad digestion
- Abdominal cramps
- Diarrhea
- Yellow Diarrhea
- Dehydration
- Dysentery
- Abdominal pain
- Muscle pains
- Gastrointestinal hemorrhage
- Temperature
- Abdominal swelling
- Abdominal gurgling
- Functional Meteorism
- Mucorrea
- Nausea
- Weight loss
- Blood in the stool
- He retched
Further indications
The character and severity of enteritis symptoms may vary.
Manifestations include abdominal pain, diarrhea (with or without blood and mucus), lack of appetite, nausea, vomiting and borborigmi, and cramps after meals.
Diarrheal discharges are variable in number (from 4-5 up to 40-50 per day) and characteristics (soft or watery stool emissions, sometimes with mucus, pus or blood streaks). Diarrhea associated with persistent vomiting rapidly determines a state of dehydration with alterations in the electrolyte balance; in this case, discomfort, myalgia and prostration may appear.
Less frequently, digestive bleeding occurs, often accompanied by fever and food malabsorption.
The diagnosis is based on clinical findings or on stool culture.
Treatment depends on the cause that causes the inflammation and can be medical (administration of antibiotics and anti-inflammatories) or surgical.
