Denis Valentinovich Manturov Minister of Industry and Trade of the Russian ...
Bacteria are a group of microscopic, predominantly unicellular organisms. They are necessary for the breakdown of organic matter. They are located on human skin, mucous membranes, in the digestive tract, some of them are vital for humans. Bacteria are diverse in shape, for example, cocci are spherical, rods are cylindrical, spirochetes are spiral. Some bacteria have flagella and can move around. The rod-shaped bacteria that form thermotolerant endospores are bacilli. Aerobic people need oxygen, anaerobic - a minimum amount is required. Some microorganisms cannot live in an environment in the presence of oxygen, others in its absence.
Symptoms
- Stomach ache.
- Also, for each infectious disease, their symptoms are distinguished.
Causes of occurrence
Pathogenic bacteria cause infections. Bacteria of the natural microbial flora of a person can also become pathogenic, for example, when immunity is weakened or due to other reasons, certain strains of bacteria begin to multiply more usually. However, most often, infectious agents that cause disease enter the human body from the outside, for example, upon contact with a sick person or a carrier of bacteria. Usually, the infection enters the human body through the mouth or nose, but microbes can enter the bloodstream or lymphatic system through open wounds.
Bacteria cause many diseases. For example, streptococci cause sore throat, pneumococci are often the cause of otitis media; mycobacteria cause tuberculosis, meningococci cause inflammation of the membranes of the brain and (or) spinal cord (meningitis). Other well-known bacterial infections are tetanus, anthrax, typhoid, cholera, and plague. Pathogenic microorganisms also cause some childhood diseases, for example, whooping cough, scarlet fever, diphtheria.
Treatment
After the creation of very effective drugs - antibiotics, most bacterial infections are not as dangerous as they used to be. Antibiotics are organic matter formed by microorganisms and having the ability to kill microbes. Antibiotics are also called antibacterial substances extracted from plant and animal cells. They are used in the form of tablets, intravenous and intramuscular injections. Some antibiotics inhibit the growth and reproduction of bacteria, while others kill them. The first group of antibiotics with a bacteriostatic effect includes tetracyclines, chloramphenicol; to the second, which has a bactericidal effect - penicillin, rifamycin and aminoglucosides.
You can protect yourself from bacterial infectious diseases by avoiding contact with infected people, properly handling food and observing the rules of personal hygiene. Mild infections usually go away on their own. Some bacterial infections can be vaccinated. First of all, it is recommended to vaccinate children against childhood diseases, as well as when traveling to exotic countries.
The doctor, first of all, will establish an accurate diagnosis of the bacterial infection. Without additional research, antibiotics are prescribed only for patients with common infectious diseases, the diagnosis of which is not difficult. In severe cases, it is necessary to identify the causative agents of the infection: there are bacteria that are resistant to certain groups of antibiotics.
Course of the disease
In some people, antibiotics cause an allergic reaction, usually a skin rash. In such cases, you need to see a doctor who will prescribe another medicine. If the patient, not paying attention to the allergic reaction, takes antibiotics again, then anaphylactic shock with the likelihood of death is possible.
If, while taking antibiotics, you do not follow the instructions of the doctor, then the infectious agents in the body can develop resistance to these antibiotics.
Such diseases include acute respiratory infections, some pneumonia, pyelonephritis, scarlet fever, syphilis, salmonellosis, tetanus, plague, gonorrhea, tuberculosis, erysipelas, endocarditis and many others. Their peculiarity is that they are caused by microorganisms that have a cell wall and a unique set of protective factors and factors of aggression.
What is a bacterium
A bacterium is a single-celled microorganism that has a cell wall, unlike viruses and prions.
With regard to the development of diseases in humans, all bacteria are divided into:
- pathogenic;
- conditionally pathogenic;
- not pathogenic.
When pathogenic bacteria enter the human body, they always cause a disease caused by them. This feature is determined by the presence of special devices designed for aggression towards humans. Among these factors of aggression are:
These microorganisms include:
- Luffner's bacillus, which causes diphtheria;
- salmonella, which causes salmonellosis;
- anthracis bacillus, which causes anthrax;
- gonococcus causing gonorrhea;
- pale treponema causing syphilis and others.
Conditionally pathogenic microorganisms can inhabit the human body, normally without causing disease, but under certain conditions become pathogenic.
These bacteria include:
- Escherichia coli;
- streptococcus;
- staphylococcus;
- proteus and some others.
Under no circumstances do non-pathogenic microorganisms cause disease in humans.
What happens when pathogenic microorganisms enter the human body
In order for a pathogenic microorganism to cause a disease in a person, several conditions must be met.
- The number of bacteria must be large enough. One or two bacteria are practically incapable of infecting a person, the nonspecific and specific defense systems of the human body can easily cope with such an insignificant threat.
- Bacteria must be complete, that is, have all their pathogenic properties. Weakened strains of bacteria also do not pose a danger to humans, they are only able to inform the immune system about their properties so that in the future the immune system can adequately recognize its enemy. The action of various vaccinations is based on this principle.
- Bacteria must get to a place in the body where they can attach, take root, take root and multiply. If, for example, salmonella gets on the skin of a person, and not in the gastrointestinal tract, then such a person will not develop salmonellosis. Therefore, you need to wash your hands before eating.
- The human immune system does not have to be prepared for a bacterial attack. If immunity is grafted naturally or artificially, then in most cases bacteria will not be able to break through the defenses of the body's defenses. On the contrary, if the immune system has not met with this type of bacteria or it is strongly weakened (for example, with AIDS), then this means that such an organism has all the gates open for the invasion of a bacterial infection.
If all these conditions are met, then an infectious bacterial infection occurs. But any infection has an incubation period, which can be from several hours (foodborne toxicoinfection) to several years (leprosy, tick-borne borreliosis). During this period, bacteria multiply, settle down, get used to new conditions of existence, spread through the internal environments of the body.
From the moment the first symptoms of the disease appear, the incubation period ends, and the disease itself begins with the corresponding clinical picture. The body can cope with some infectious bacterial diseases on its own, with others it may need outside help.
How is a bacterial infection diagnosed?
Bacterial infection is diagnosed by the following methods:
- using a microscope (staining microscopy);
- by sowing (the material with bacteria is spread on a special nutrient medium and allowed to stand in warmth for about a week, after which they look at what has grown there and make a conclusion);
- by determining antigens and antibodies (laboratory methods: ELISA, RIF, PCR and others);
- by infecting animals (biological method: rats, mice are infected with the material, then they are opened and the insides are examined under a microscope)
How is a bacterial infection treated?
The main treatment for bacterial diseases is antibacterial chemotherapy. There are many groups and varieties of antibiotics that are intended for strictly defined groups of microorganisms.
Antibacterial treatment must be taken very seriously, as the inept handling of antibiotics has recently caused real disasters in the modern world. The fact is that microorganisms, due to their inherent mutations, gradually get used to antibiotics and sooner or later the so-called antibiotic resistance of microorganisms arises. In other words, antibiotics simply stop working on them, and then more powerful antibiotics (reserve antibiotics) have to be used, which are still able to resist bacteria.
Thus, medicine is indirectly responsible for the emergence of health care-associated infections (HCI). Previously, such infections were called hospital-acquired (nosocomial infections) or hospital-acquired (HI). These infections differ from the usual ones in that standard antibiotics do not work on them and they can only be defeated by using more powerful drugs.
Not so long ago, multidrug-resistant strains of tuberculosis infection have appeared. There are not so many drugs against tuberculosis. Medicine uses mainly what was developed during the Soviet era. Since then, the development of phthisiology has noticeably stopped. And now no anti-tuberculosis drugs act on this type of tuberculosis infection (there are only 6 of them). In other words, people with this form of infection are incurable. But more than that, they are deadly for the people around them, since they are carriers.
Reasons for the appearance of antibiotic resistance
Antibiotic resistance is a natural process, since bacteria, like all living things, are able to adapt (adapt) to changing environmental conditions. But the speed of this process was greatly influenced by the inept use of antibacterial drugs. When antibiotics were sold in pharmacies without a prescription, anyone (or, even worse, a pharmacist!) Could play doctor and prescribe treatment for themselves. But, as a rule, this treatment ended in 1-2 days, after the disappearance of the symptoms of the disease. And this led to the fact that the bacteria were not completely destroyed, but passed into other forms (L-forms) and for a long time lived in the "dark corners" of the body of "cured" people, waiting for the right moment. With a decrease in immunity for one reason or another, they again passed into their original forms and caused the previous disease, which could be transmitted to other people, and so on.
It is for this reason that antibiotics are prescribed in a course of 5-7-10-14 days. Bacteria must be killed completely and not accustomed to antibiotics.
But there is another problem with antibiotic therapy. It lies in the fact that, in addition to pathogenic bacteria, when taking antibiotics, beneficial ones (lactobacteria, bifidobacteria gastrointestinal tract). This can serve as a start for the transition of the conditionally pathogenic flora of the gastrointestinal tract to the pathogenic one and lead to the development of such a complication of antibiotic therapy as dysbiosis, which requires certain treatment in the form of stimulating the growth of beneficial intestinal microflora.
How does the disease progress with a bacterial infection?
With the development of a bacterial infectious process, one of the first symptoms will be fever. It is usually high. The fever is caused by the fact that the LPS-complex of the bacterial cell wall, when destroyed, enters the bloodstream and reaches the hypothalamus, namely the center of thermoregulation in it, along with the blood flow. LPS-complex shifts the set point of the center of thermoregulation and the body “thinks” that it is cold and increases heat production, reduces heat transfer.
Fever is a protective reaction of the body, as the body temperature up to 39 degrees stimulates the immune system. If the body temperature rises above 39 degrees, then it must be brought down with paracetamol or, indirectly, with antibiotics (a decrease in body temperature within 24-48 hours from the start of antibiotic therapy is a sign of a properly selected antibacterial drug).
Another manifestation of a bacterial infectious process is intoxication syndrome. It manifests itself as a deterioration in well-being, apathy, decreased mood, headaches, pain in muscles and joints, nausea, vomiting, and the like are possible. To relieve these symptoms, you need to drink a lot. warm water(at least 2 liters per day). Excess water will dilute the bacteria toxins, reducing their concentration, and also remove some of them in the urine.
These two signs of bacterial inflammation are universal to almost all infections. All other signs are due to the characteristics of a particular pathogen, their exotoxins and other factors of aggression.
Separately, it should be said about such specific infections as tuberculosis, syphilis, leprosy (which, however, no longer exists). These infections are a little different from the rest. The fact is that they have existed for a long time with humanity and human body a little "got used" to them. They, as a rule, do not cause a vivid picture of the infectious bacterial process, their clinical manifestations are not bright. But they cause a specific inflammation in the body that can be seen through a microscope (granulomas). These diseases are treated with great difficulty and treatment consists only in eliminating the clinical manifestations of the disease. Completely cleanse the human body of these pathogens (eradication) by this moment does not seem possible.
How the body fights bacteria
The body's immune system consists of two subsystems: humoral and cellular.
The humoral system is designed to create special antibodies to the antigens of the pathogen. These antibodies are like bullets capable of piercing the cell wall of bacteria. It happens in the following way. When a harmful bacterium enters the body, it somehow meets the special guard cells of the immune system - macrophages. These macrophages attack the bacterium and devour it, thereby studying its antigenic structure (in fact, they look at the bacterial skin and look for “protrusions” on it - antigens where an antibody can be attached so that it perforates this skin). After studying the bacteria, macrophages, which are already called antigen-presenting cells (APCs), travel to the central organs of the immune system (red bone marrow) and report the bacteria. Those give the order to make antibodies (proteins) that will be able to attach to a given cell wall. The antibodies created are simply released into the bloodstream. When an antibody finds its antigen, it attaches to it. On this complex "antigen-antibody" proteins begin to attach from the blood, which so change the spatial configuration of the antibody that the latter unfolds, tilts and pierces (perforates) the wall of bacteria, causing its death.
Cellular immunity works differently. White blood cells (leukocytes) like an army of soldiers massively attack the enemy using special proteolytic enzymes, hydrogen peroxide and other weapons. Outwardly, it looks like pus. It is thanks to such an abundance of proteolytic enzymes in the pus that it is able to dissolve the surrounding tissues and break out, thereby removing foreign substances from the body.
What happens after recovery
Recovery can be clinical, laboratory, or complete.
Clinical recovery means the absence of any symptoms related to this disease.
Laboratory cure put when it is impossible to identify any laboratory signs of the presence of this disease.
Complete recovery will be when the pathogenic microbes that caused the disease remain in the human body.
Of course, not all infectious bacterial processes end in recovery. Deaths are sometimes possible. The transition of an acute infectious process to a chronic one (clinical recovery) is also possible.
Video: Antibiotic Resistance of Bacteria
Because antibiotics have been invented, bacterial infections are no longer so life-threatening. If you seek medical help in time, you will be able to avoid heavy ones.
There are two types of antibiotics:
- preparations with bactericidal action - aimed at the complete destruction of microorganisms
- drugs with bacteriostatic action - aimed at stopping the growth and reproduction of bacteria
An infected person may be given oral antibiotics (tablets) or, in severe cases, intramuscularly or intravenously (injections).
Antibacterial drugs can often cause an allergic reaction. Therefore, while taking an antibiotic, they are prescribed antihistamines... In case of severe allergies, the drug should be replaced. If the antibiotic gives a lot, then it is not suitable. The doctor may prescribe another.
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How to get rid of stomatitis at home, the first symptoms, reasons, better ways treatment for children and adults
Along with antibacterial drugs, as a rule, prebiotics for the intestines are prescribed. Also drugs that strengthen the immune system and vitamin complexes.
There is a certain danger that bacteria will become accustomed to certain antibiotics. Then the medicine will stop working. Therefore, it is necessary not to interrupt the course of treatment ahead of time. If the antibiotic does not overcome the disease and there is no improvement, then it will need to be replaced with a stronger one.
Recovery from a bacterial disease can be of several types:
- complete - all pathogens of the disease are completely removed from the body
- laboratory - according to the results of laboratory studies, no pathogenic microorganisms were detected
- clinical - no symptoms of the disease were found
If the treatment is carried out in a timely manner, then a complete recovery occurs without the development of any dangerous complications.
Preventive measures
As a preventive measure, it is necessary to strengthen the immune system. If a person has a strong immune system, then many infectious diseases will not be dangerous for him. If the disease does develop, it will pass in a mild form and recovery will come quickly.
To strengthen the immune system, you need to walk more, eat right, and carry out hardening procedures. The food should include fruits and vegetables, which contain a large amount of vitamins and other nutrients.
As a hardening procedure, you can use a contrast shower, douche cold water... You can regularly visit the steam room, swimming pool. In the fresh air, you need to spend at least two hours a day. If this is not possible, then at least on the weekend you should breathe air.
Physical education perfectly strengthens the body. You can do gymnastic in the morning or run. You should visit the gym at least three times a week.
It is imperative to avoid contact with people who are already sick. If contact cannot be avoided, then a gauze bandage must be put on the face. You need to wash your hands thoroughly after visiting a patient; it is better to use antibacterial soap for these purposes.
Vaccination is another important preventive measure. It is necessary to get vaccinated before traveling to exotic countries. Also, vaccinations are required for children.
Bacterial infections are diverse, so you should be careful about your state of health, at the first manifestations of the disease, immediately consult a doctor.
Oct 29, 2016 Violetta the Healer
Pathogenic bacteria are bacteria that can cause infection. Most bacteria are harmless or even beneficial, however some are pathogenic. One bacterial disease with a high disease burden is tuberculosis, caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis, which kills about 2 million people a year, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa. Pathogenic bacteria contribute to the development of other globally significant diseases such as pneumonia, which can be caused by bacteria such as Streptococcus and Pseudomonas, and foodborne diseases, which can be caused by bacteria such as Shigella, Campylobacter and Salmonella. Pathogenic bacteria also cause infections such as tetanus, typhoid fever, diphtheria, syphilis, and leprosy. Pathogenic bacteria are also responsible for high infant mortality rates in developing countries. Koch's postulates are the standard that establishes the relationship between the causative microbe and the disease.
Diseases
Each type of bacteria has a specific effect and causes symptoms in infected people. Some of the people infected with the pathogenic bacteria, or even most of them, have no symptoms. People with weakened immune systems are more susceptible to disease-causing bacteria.
Pathogenic susceptibility
Certain pathogenic bacteria cause disease under certain conditions, such as entering the skin through an incision, during sexual activity, or when immune function is weakened. The bacteria Streptococcus and Staphylococcus are part of the normal microflora of the skin and are usually present in healthy skin or in the nasopharyngeal region. However, these species can potentially initiate skin infections. They can also cause sepsis, pneumonia, and meningitis. These infections can become very serious and trigger a systemic inflammatory response, leading to severe vasodilation, shock, and death. Other bacteria are opportunistic pathogens and cause disease mainly in people suffering from immunosuppression or cystic fibrosis. Examples of these opportunistic pathogens include Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Burkholderia cenocepacia, and Mycobacterium avium.
Infections in a specific tissue
Bacterial pathogens often cause infections in specific areas of the body. Other pathogens are universal. Bacterial vaginosis is caused by bacteria that alter the vaginal microflora, causing excessive fast growth bacteria that crowd out lactobacilli species that maintain a healthy vaginal microbial population. Other non-bacterial vaginal infections include: yeast infection (candidiasis) and trichomoniasis (trichomoniasis). Bacterial meningitis is a bacterial inflammation of the meninges, the protective membranes that cover the brain and spinal cord. Bacterial pneumonia is a bacterial infection of the lungs. Infections urinary tract are predominantly caused by bacteria. Symptoms include urgency and frequent urge to urinate, pain during urination, and cloudy urine. The main pathogen is Escherichia coli. Urine is usually sterile, but contains many salts and waste products. Bacteria can rise in bladder or kidney, causes cystitis and nephritis. Bacterial gastroenteritis is caused by pathogenic gut bacteria. These pathogenic species generally differ from the normally harmless bacteria of the normal intestinal flora. But other strains of the same species can be pathogenic. Distinguishing them is sometimes difficult, as is the case with Escherichia. Bacterial skin infections include:
Mechanisms
Nutrients
Iron is essential for humans and for the growth of most bacteria. To obtain free iron, some pathogens secrete proteins called siderophores, which remove iron from transport proteins by binding it even more tightly to iron. After the formation of the iron-siderophore complex, it is captured by the siderophore receptors on the surface of the bacteria, and then the iron is introduced into the bacteria.
Direct damage
Once pathogens attach to host cells, they can cause direct damage as pathogens use host cells to obtain nutrients and production of waste products. As pathogens multiply and divide within host cells, the cells are usually destroyed and intercellular bacteria are released. Some bacteria, such as E. coli, Shigella, Salmonella and Neisseria gonorrhoeae, can induce absorption by the host epithelial cells in a process similar to phagocytosis. The pathogens can then destroy the host cells as they pass through them and are expelled from the host cells during the process of reverse phagocytosis, which allows them to enter other host cells. Some bacteria can also enter host cells by secreting enzymes and using their own motility; such penetration by itself can damage the host cell.
Toxin production
Toxins are toxic substances produced by certain microorganisms and are often the main contributing factor to the pathogenic properties of microorganisms. Endotoxins are lipid regions of lipopolysaccharides that are part of the outer membrane of the cell walls of gram-negative bacteria. Endotoxins are released when bacteria are lysed, which is why after antibiotic treatment, symptoms may initially worsen as the bacteria die and release their endotoxins. Exotoxins are proteins produced within pathogenic bacteria, as part of their growth and metabolism, and are most abundant in gram-positive bacteria. Exotoxins are released when the bacteria die and the cell wall disintegrates. Exotoxins have a very specific effect on the tissues of the body and its work, destroying parts of the host cell or inhibiting certain metabolic functions. Exotoxins are among the most dangerous substances known. Just 1 mg of botulinum exotoxin is enough to kill one million guinea pigs... Diseases caused in this way are often caused by small amounts of exotoxins, and not by the bacteria themselves.
Treatment
Bacterial infections can be treated with antibiotics, which are classified as bactericidal if they kill bacteria, or bacteriostatic if they only prevent bacterial growth. There are many types of antibiotics, and each class inhibits a process that is different from the pathogen in the host. For example, the antibiotics chloramphenicol and tetracycline inhibit the bacterial ribosome, but not the structurally different eukaryotic ribosome, and therefore have selective toxicity. Antibiotics are used both in the treatment of human diseases and in intensive agriculture to promote the growth of animals. Both uses can promote the rapid development of antibiotic resistance in bacterial populations. Phage therapy can also be used to treat certain bacterial infections. Infections can be prevented with antiseptic measures such as sterilizing the skin before using a syringe needle and proper care behind the catheters. Surgical and dental instruments are also sterilized to prevent contamination with bacteria. Disinfectants such as bleaches are used to kill bacteria or other pathogens on surfaces to prevent contamination and further reduce the risk of infection. Bacteria in food are killed when food is cooked to temperatures above 73 ° C (163 ° F).
List of the most famous pathogenic bacteria
| 2015/03/16 20:30 | Natalia | |
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| 2015/06/19 12:07 | Natalia | |
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Thousands of bacteria are known today - some are beneficial, while others are pathogenic and cause disease. Many terrible diseases - plague, anthrax, leprosy, cholera and tuberculosis - are bacterial infections. Well, the most common are meningitis and pneumonia. It is important not to confuse bacterial infections with viral ones, to know the symptoms and treatment options.
What infections are called bacterial?
Bacterial infections are a huge group of diseases. They are united by one reason - bacteria. They are the oldest and most numerous microorganisms.- Airways;
- intestines;
- blood;
- skin covering.
Bacterial infections respiratory tract often develop after a cold, as a complication. Immunity becomes weaker, and pathogenic bacteria, which previously did not manifest themselves in any way, begin to multiply. Respiratory bacterial infections can be caused by the following pathogens:
- staphylococci;
- pneumococci;
- streptococci;
- whooping cough;
- meningococci;
- mycobacteria;
- mycoplasmas.
To bacterial infectious diseases of the lower respiratory tract include bacterial bronchitis and.
Bacterial intestinal infections often caused by unwashed hands, the use of foods with poor heat treatment, improper storage, or an expired shelf life. In most cases, the problem is caused by:
- shigella;
- staphylococci;
- cholera vibrios;
- typhoid stick;
- salmonellosis.
Intestinal bacterial infections are more often manifested by the following diseases:
- salmonellosis;
- typhoid fever;
- dysentery.
In children most often there are viral infections, which are complicated by bacterial ones due to the weakening of the body during the period of illness. In most cases, in childhood the following viral diseases are observed:
- measles;
- rubella;
- piggy;
- chicken pox.
Children who have had such infections receive strong immunity and are no longer exposed to these diseases. But if during the period of illness the child had contact with harmful bacteria, then it is quite possible that complications will develop in the form of bacterial pneumonia, otitis media, etc.
How to distinguish a viral infection from a bacterial one
Very often, bacterial and viral infections are confused. They can have the same symptoms and even similar results in diagnostic tests.
It is imperative to differentiate these infections, since the drugs for their treatment require completely different ones.
There are several signs by which you can determine if a bacterial or viral infection is present in the body:
- Duration. Symptoms of a viral infection usually subside quickly (in about 7-10 days), and a bacterial disease can last more than a month.
- Slime color. If the disease is accompanied by sputum discharge or nasal mucus discharge, then attention should be paid to their color. The virus is usually accompanied by secretions of a transparent color and liquid consistency. For bacterial infections, discharge of a dark greenish or yellow-green color is more characteristic. You should not rely completely on this sign.
- Temperature. Both types of infections are usually accompanied by elevated temperature, but with bacterial diseases, it is higher and is characterized by a gradual increase. With a virus, this indicator behaves the other way around - it gradually decreases.
- Infection routes. Among bacterial infections, only some diseases are transmitted by contact, and for the virus this is the main route of spread.
- Development and localization. Bacterial infections are characterized by slow development, and the virus immediately manifests itself brightly. In the first case, the lesion focus is highlighted, that is, the disease is localized in a certain area. A viral disease affects the entire body.
- Test results. One of the main indicators is the level of leukocytes and lymphocytes. Leukocytes increase with infection of any etiology, but with a bacterial infection, it is neutrophils that are increased(this is a special type of leukocytes). With a viral infection, leukocytes can be increased, but most often they are lowered (including neutrophils) (for example, with influenza, viral hepatitis, measles, rubella, mumps, typhoid fever, leukocytes are necessarily below normal), but here with a viral infection, an increase in the number of lymphocytes is necessarily observed, and an increase in monocytes can also be observed (for example), therefore, the result is assessed general analysis blood complex. Another analysis is bacteriological examination of biological fluid (discharge of the eye, ear, sinuses, wounds or sputum, for example). This test will identify the causative agent of the bacterial infection.
Symptoms of bacterial infections
There are many possible bacterial infections. Each is different in its own characteristics, therefore, the set of symptoms is different.The incubation period for bacterial infections is wide. Some pathogens actively multiply in a few hours, while others take several days.
Signs of a bacterial infection depend on which part of the body it has affected. Bowel diseases in this case are manifested by the following symptoms:
- fever and fever;
- pain in the abdomen;
- vomiting;
- diarrhea.
Children's bacterial infections have a wider range of symptoms. The fact is that almost always a bacterial infection is a continuation of a viral one. For example, a child becomes ill, but under certain conditions he develops a bacterial infection as a complication of the initial disease, therefore the clinical picture is erased.
But nevertheless, diseases are expressed by the following symptoms:
- high temperature (over 39 ° C);
- nausea and vomiting;
- plaque on the tongue and tonsils;
- severe intoxication.
If, after improving health, a deterioration in the patient's condition is observed, then most often this indicates the development of complications of a bacterial nature after a viral illness.
Bacterial infections in the upper respiratory tract are also often manifested after the transferred virus, when immunity decreases. Infection is expressed in the following symptoms:
- deterioration of health;
- pronounced lesion;
- purulent discharge;
- white bloom in the throat.
A bacterial infection in women affecting the genitourinary system has the following symptoms:
- vaginal discharge - the color and consistency depends on the causative agent of the infection;
- itching and burning;
- unpleasant odor;
- painful urination;
- pain during intercourse.
- pathological discharge from the urethra;
- unpleasant odor of discharge;
- painful urination, itching, burning;
- discomfort during intercourse.
Diagnostics
For bacterial infections, specific research is needed. They are used to differentiate bacterial from viral lesions, as well as to identify the pathogen. The course of treatment depends on the test results.
Bacterial infections are diagnosed mainly through laboratory tests. The following techniques are usually used:
- A blood test with a leukocyte formula. With a bacterial infection, an increased number of neutrophils is observed. When the number of stab neutrophils is increased, then they speak of acute infectious disease... But if metamyelocytes, myelocytes are found, then the patient's condition is characterized as dangerous, and requires emergency care doctors. With the help of such a diagnosis, it is possible to identify the nature and stage of the disease.
- Analysis of urine. Shows whether the urinary system is affected by bacteria, and is also necessary to determine the severity of intoxication.
- Bacteriological examination with an antibioticogram. With the help of this analysis, it determines the type of pathogen of the infection, and by what means it can be killed (the so-called sensitivity of the pathogen to antibiotics is determined). These factors are important in order to prescribe the correct therapy.
- Serological research. Based on the detection of antibodies and antigens that interact in a specific way. For such studies, venous blood is taken. This method is effective when it is impossible to isolate the pathogen.
Laboratory research is the main direction in the diagnosis of bacterial infections. In some cases, additional examinations are required:
- X-ray. Perform to differentiate specific processes in individual organs.
- Instrumental diagnostics. Ultrasound or laparoscopy is used more often. These methods are needed to learn internal organs for specific lesions.
Appointment of the correct treatment, its effectiveness and the risk of complications directly depend on the timeliness of the diagnosis. You should consult a doctor at the first alarming symptoms - at the reception, the patient is always prescribed tests.
General approach to treating bacterial infections
In the treatment of bacterial infections, they are guided by general principles... This implies a specific therapy algorithm:- Eliminate the cause of the disease.
- Cleanse the body of toxins.
- Heal organs affected by infection.
- Reduce the severity of symptoms and alleviate the condition.
With regard to taking medications, antibiotics of the penicillin group and cephalosporins of the 3rd generation are classified as broad-acting drugs. For more information about antibiotics prescribed for genitourinary infections - read), for intestinal -, but basically the treatment is carried out with the same drugs, just the dosage, duration and frequency of taking the medicine can be different.
There are a lot of antibiotics, each group of such drugs has its own mechanism of action and purpose. Self-medication, at best, will not bring an effect, and at worst, it will lead to neglect of the disease and a number of complications, therefore, the doctor should prescribe treatment depending on the nature of the disease. The patient is only obliged to follow all the doctor's prescriptions and not to arbitrarily reduce the course of taking antibiotics and the prescribed dosage.
Let us summarize what has been said. Bacterial infections mass, and the effectiveness of their treatment directly depends on the identification of the causative agent of the disease. Most people are carriers of certain bacteria, but the development of infection is provoked only by certain factors. This can be avoided with preventive measures.
Next article.
