Small Group: Gastroenteritis and Diarrhea Flashcards
What is the technical definition of diarrhea?
Three or more water stools over more than or equal to 24 hours
Which parts of the GI tract are usually involved in inflammatory and non-inflammatory diarrheas?
Non-inflammatory: small intestine
Inflammatory: large intestine
What kind of diarrhea does Giardia cause?
Watery, non-inflammatory
Why is glucose added to ORT?
Because glucose facilitates sodium uptake and water follows sodium
Other than dehydration, what negative things can result from diarrhea?
Metabolic acidosis (loss of bicarb) Hypokalemia (loss of potassium)
Which classes of antibiotics are recommended in treating diarrhea?
Fluoroquinolones and macrolides
Most viruses do not cause fever, but __________ does in about 1/3 of cases.
Rotavirus
How does blunting of villi lead to diarrhea?
Small intestinal villi contain brush border enzymes. Eliminating those enzymes by blunting of villi can cause increased sugar loads in the large intestine.
True or false: Norovirus most often occurs during summer months.
False. Like Rotavirus, it is also a winter illness.
