Question
A 15-month-old baby has been experiencing intermittent diarrhea for 10 days. For the first four days, the baby had one to two bowel movements per day. The situation improved on the fifth day, but diarrhea recurred after eating shrimp on the sixth day. On the seventh day, the baby went to the hospital for a check-up and was found to have 10 white blood cells in the stool. How should it be handled?
Answer
Pediatric bacterial dysentery is a common intestinal infectious disease caused by Shigella species, with clinical manifestations including fever, abdominal pain, diarrhea, tenesmus, and mucopurulent stools. This disease not only harms the digestive system but, if not treated promptly, may also lead to systemic failure of circulation, respiration, and even life-threatening conditions. Preventive measures include maintaining personal hygiene, drinking boiled water, using disinfected water to wash fruits, vegetables, and utensils, washing hands before meals and after using the toilet, not defecating anywhere except for designated areas, heating leftover food before consumption, and separating raw and cooked foods to prevent flies from contacting food.