What Are the Signs of Food Poisoning in Children?

Food poisoning refers to poisoning caused by eating food contaminated with bacteria, bacterial toxins or poisons or containing toxic substances. According to the nature of the poison, food poisoning can be generally divided into three categories, namely infectious (bacterial and fungal) food poisoning, chemical food poisoning, and toxic animal and plant food poisoning. The clinical manifestations of pediatric food poisoning are mainly gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, etc., often accompanied by fever. In severe cases, dehydration, acidosis, and even shock and coma can cause death.

Basic Information

Visiting department: Emergency department, pediatrics
Multiple groups: Children

Common causes: Caused by eating foods that are contaminated by bacteria, bacterial toxins or poisons or contain toxic substances
Common symptoms: Nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, etc.

Causes of food poisoning in children

Bacterial food poisoning

Food poisoning caused by ingestion of food containing bacteria or bacterial toxins. The reason is that food is contaminated by bacteria and toxins during the preparation, storage, transportation and sale. Common bacteria are Salmonella, Escherichia coli, Escherichia coli, halophiles, Proteus, Wechella, etc. In addition, some bacteria, such as Staphylococcus aureus, Botox, and Streptococcus, can contaminate food and multiply in the food and produce toxins. Foods can be killed by high temperature treatment, but they cannot destroy the toxins. Causes poisoning.

2. Fungal food poisoning

The poisoning caused by eating moldy food is called fungal food poisoning. Some are acute poisoning with extremely high mortality rates; some are chronic poisoning that can lead to canceration. Common fungi are Aspergillus, such as Aspergillus flavus, Penicillium, such as Penicillium toxin, Fusarium, such as Gibberella, Black spot, etc. General heat treatment cannot destroy mycotoxins in food. Fungal growth and reproduction require a certain temperature and humidity, so fungal food poisoning often has obvious seasonal and regional.

3. Poisonous animal and plant poisoning

Some foods, such as puffer fish, toads, toadstools, and ginkgo, are toxic in themselves; other foods, such as cassava and germinated potatoes, can also be poisoned if they are not handled properly.

4. Chemical food poisoning

Food is contaminated with heavy metals, organic phosphorus, etc., which can cause poisoning. It mainly includes toxic chemicals; food poisoning caused by the addition of non-food-grade or fake or prohibited food additives, nutrition fortifiers, and excessive use of food additives; foods that cause chemical changes in nutrients due to storage and other reasons, such as Poisoning caused by sour oil and fat.

Clinical manifestations of food poisoning in children

Onset

Mostly occur in summer and autumn, and several or dozens of people have the same symptoms at the same time; the incubation period is short and the onset is rapid. Most people can get the disease in a short period of time, and the incidence curve shows a sudden upward trend. But there is no evidence of human-to-human transmission.

2. Relationship with food

Patients have all eaten the same food recently, and the incidence range is limited to those who eat this kind of food. After stopping eating this food, the disease will soon stop, and the incidence curve will suddenly decrease after a sudden rise.

3. Clinical characteristics

Mainly gastrointestinal symptoms, such as nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, etc., often accompanied by fever, severe cases may have dehydration, metabolic acid-base balance disorders, and even shock, coma; patients with thin stools, may have mucus, pus and blood And fishy smell.

4. Clinical characteristics of different food poisoning

(1) Salmonella poisoning is mostly caused by eating meat or animal viscera, especially domestic animals that die. The incubation period is 6 to 24 hours, and the longest can be 2 to 3 days. Clinical manifestations are fever, headache, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, general weakness, etc., which may be accompanied by rash and pus and blood in stool. The course of disease is 1 to 3 weeks, and severe cases can die.

(2) Staphylococcal poisoning caused by food leftovers, contaminated meat, milk, eggs, etc. The incubation period is short, usually 3 hours. The clinical manifestations are vomiting, diarrhea, mainly vomiting, and fever is not obvious.

(3) Halophilic bacteria poisoning caused by edible seafood or salted food. The incubation period is 8 to 12 hours. The clinical manifestations are abdominal pain, diarrhea, vomiting, moderate fever, and the stool is water-washed or pus and bloody.

(4) Botox poisoning Botox is an anaerobic bacterium, mostly caused by consumption of expired canned food, sausages, or closed storage food. The incubation period is from 1 to several days. The neurological symptoms are obvious. The clinical manifestations are headache, dizziness, weakness, weakness, Eyelid drooping, diplopia, dilated pupils, blurred vision, and even blindness; difficulty swallowing and breathing, loss of sound, and death from respiratory paralysis.

(5) The incubation period of Escherichia coli is short, usually 4-12 hours, with mild symptoms, mainly diarrhea, smelly stool, and rarely fever.

(6) Fungal poisoning first has gastrointestinal symptoms, and then liver and kidney damage or neurological symptoms such as headache, dizziness, irritability, convulsions, and coma. Some fungi cause neutropenia or deficiency, thrombocytopenia, etc.

(7) Poisonous poisonous poisonous poisonous poisonous poisonous poisonous mushroom looks similar to fragrant mushrooms, contains highly toxic, after ingestion, shock, coma, acute systemic bleeding of liver and kidney failure and so on. Clinical manifestations vary. Mainly: gastrointestinal type, incubation period of 0.5 to 6 hours, with nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, etc .; neuropsychiatric type, incubation period of 1 to 6 hours, in addition to gastrointestinal symptoms, there are salivation, sweating, slow pulse, Pupil diminution, etc., severe cases of delirium, convulsions and coma; hemolytic type, incubation period of 6 to 12 hours, in addition to gastrointestinal symptoms, clinical manifestations of acute hemolysis; and toxic hepatitis type.

(8) Germinated potato poisoning can occur within tens of minutes or hours after eating germinated or immature potatoes. The clinical manifestations are burning sensation in the throat and mouth, burning sensation in the abdomen and pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea; occasional mucus and bloody stools, fever, and death from central respiratory failure.

(9) "Clenbuterol" poisoning Pork or internal organs fed by Clenbuterol, the incubation period is 10 minutes to 6 hours. The main manifestations are dizziness, headache, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, facial flushing, fever, palpitation, rapid heartbeat, muscle tremor, and metabolic disorders such as hypokalemia.

Pediatric food poisoning test

Blood biochemical examination

Blood biochemical and blood gas analysis can be used to understand complications such as liver, kidney, myocardial damage and acid-base imbalance after poisoning.

2. Examination of ECG, EEG, etc.

The patient's heart and brain function can be observed.

3. Detection of pathogenic bacteria

The cause of the disease can be detected from excreta, vomit, leftover food, eating utensils, etc. For example, when botulinum poisoning occurs, inject the suspicious food into mice or guinea pigs. If the exotoxin contains botulinum toxin, the animal quickly paralyzes and dies; heat the food extract to 100 ° C and do the same experiment after 30 minutes. The animal will not die. To prove it.

Diagnosis of food poisoning in children

A clear history of poisoning makes diagnosis easy. Sometimes comprehensive analysis and judgment are required. The disease can be diagnosed according to epidemiological data. Patients generally have the same history of eating the same food. Simultaneously, those who eat simultaneously have the same or successive symptoms. The symptoms are similar. The remaining food or the patient's vomit, gastric juice, and feces have detected pathogenic substances or pathogens. Clinical manifestations Meet the characteristics of poisoning; related laboratory tests; therapeutic diagnosis.

Differential diagnosis of food poisoning in children

Pay attention to identifying the source of food poisoning. The ingredients of suspicious foods must be clarified. Toxic analysis of suspicious foods should be done as much as possible, combined with the analysis of clinical symptoms, signs, stomach contents, and excretory toxicants to make a clear diagnosis.

Food poisoning complications in children

Severe cases may have dehydration, acidosis, and even shock and coma. Botox poisoning can cause blindness, difficulty swallowing and breathing, and death due to respiratory paralysis; fungi can cause liver and kidney damage, convulsions, neutropenia, thrombocytopenia, etc.

Dehydration

Due to vomiting and diarrhea, a lot of water is lost. If it cannot be replenished immediately, it will lead to shock in severe cases, and even life-threatening. It is necessary to replenish body fluids in time. Dehydration can be divided into hypertonic dehydration, hypotonic dehydration, and isotonic dehydration. Liquids with corresponding tension are given according to the nature of dehydration.

2. Acidosis

Diarrhea can cause loss of alkaline intestinal fluid, severe dehydration can cause microcirculation and hypoxia, and both can cause acidosis.

3. shock

Pathogenic factors such as dehydration, acidosis, and toxins can affect the body and cause a decrease in effective circulating blood volume, resulting in insufficient perfusion of organs and tissues, and multiple organ dysfunction or failure.

4. Respiratory failure

Serious complications such as shock, cerebral edema, or some food poisoning itself such as botulinum toxin can cause muscle paralysis and cause respiratory failure.

5. Convulsions

Severe liver damage, shock, cerebral edema, or some neurotoxic food poisoning can cause convulsions, and children with convulsions and coma.

Pediatric food poisoning treatment

Remove poison

Inducing vomiting, gastric lavage, catharsis, and intestinal lavage, vomiting and gastric lavage can be induced for 4-6 hours after taking poison, the sooner the better.

2. Speed up excretion of absorbed poison

Diuretic and detoxification can be done on the basis of sufficient fluid replacement, and severe blood purification treatment can be performed.

3. Detoxification

Such as Botox can give polyvalent botulinum serum. First make an intradermal test. Use it early, with poor results after 48 hours. Babies do not advocate application.

4. Infectious food

Antibiotics for intestinal bacteria can be used.

5. Symptomatic supportive treatment

Inhale oxygen, reduce fever, correct dehydration, acidosis, control convulsions, rescue respiratory failure, treat and protect important organ functions, prevent and treat infections, maintain nutrition, and do good monitoring.

Prognosis of pediatric food poisoning

It is related to factors such as age, type of poisoning, dose, length of time, and whether the treatment is timely and reasonable.

Mild to moderate poisoning can be completely recovered after timely and reasonable treatment. Severe poisoning is often complicated by circulatory failure, respiratory failure, central nervous failure, and high mortality; survivors may have varying degrees of neurological sequelae or other organ damage.

Prevention of food poisoning in children

1. Strengthen health education and don't eat rotten food.

2. Leftovers and leftovers should be heated before eating, all overdue cans are thrown away, and sick and dead livestock are buried deeply.

3. Raw fruits, vegetables and vegetables should be washed, and raw and cooked foods should be processed separately.

4.Employees in the catering industry need regular training and regular physical examinations.

5. Foods are refrigerated and frozen, and the temperature is controlled at 2 8 , which can inhibit the reproduction of most bacteria. Cooked foods are protected from light, cut off oxygen, and do not repeatedly contaminate during refrigerated storage.

6. High temperature sterilization of food before eating is a reliable method. Its effect is related to factors such as temperature, heating time, bacteria type, pollution amount and processed food properties, etc., depending on the specific food type.

7. It is prohibited to eat poisonous animals and plants such as toadstools, puffer fish.