Interviewee: Zhang Hui, Deputy Chief Physician in Pediatrics of the Third Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University

Viral encephalitis is a common infectious disease of the central nervous system in childhood. Different patients have different degrees of illness, which can be completely cured after medical treatment; In severe cases, neurological sequelae may be left behind, even death.

Zhang Hui, Deputy Chief Physician of Pediatrics of the Third Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, pointed out in an online interview with family doctors that 80% of patients with viral encephalitis were caused by enterovirus infection, and only a few of them were infected with encephalitis B virus transmitted by intrauterine infection and mosquito bites.

The early symptoms of viral encephalitis are very similar to colds, so they are easy to be ignored. Zhang Hui, deputy chief physician, reminded that unlike a simple cold, children with viral encephalitis often have abnormal mental conditions, and young parents should be vigilant.

Marked symptom of viral encephalitis: cold accompanied by disturbance of consciousness

The clinical manifestations of viral encephalitis are fever, headache, convulsion, vomiting, lethargy, etc. It is one of the most common neurological infectious diseases in children. Due to the different location and scope of virus invasion, the severity of viral encephalitis varies greatly. The patients with mild encephalitis have a good prognosis after timely treatment, and the patients with severe encephalitis may have serious sequelae, even death.

Zhang Hui, the deputy chief physician, said that the peak of viral encephalitis is from July to September every year. If the baby at home has symptoms of upper respiratory tract or digestive tract, it is necessary to first recall whether the baby has a history of mosquito bites, and closely observe whether the baby has symptoms of nervous system, such as jet vomiting, headache, dizziness, lethargy, mental depression, convulsion, etc. If the above symptoms occur, you must take your baby to a doctor immediately so as to diagnose and treat as soon as possible.

"If there are symptoms of semi coma, coma and delirium, it is already a serious manifestation." Zhang Hui, deputy chief physician, told the family doctor online. Parents should never wait for their children to have severe symptoms of viral encephalitis before taking them to hospital, because even if they are cured, they may leave serious sequelae, such as paralysis, mental retardation, secondary epilepsy, etc.

How to nurse children with severe viral encephalitis

If the baby has a cold and fever on weekdays, the parents should not be careless. They should carefully observe whether the baby's symptoms are different from those of common cold and fever. If there are symptoms such as vomiting and lethargy, there should be no fluke psychology. Go to the doctor as soon as possible and treat it as soon as possible. The treatment effect of patients with viral meningitis found early is better than that of patients found late.

For children with viral encephalitis, after being sent to the hospital for effective treatment, daily care should also be practical, such as keeping warm, changing sweaty clothes for the baby in time, adding digestible complementary food for the baby, adding more water, and strengthening the children's muscle exercise. For details, please refer to the following four aspects:

1. If the baby is in a long-term coma, it is necessary to pay attention to the position, so that the baby's limbs are in functional position.

2. If the language function is damaged, parents should talk with the baby more patiently and gently to improve and restore its language function.

3. If the baby has twitching symptoms, parents need to prevent suffocation caused by aspiration, prevent the baby from injuring himself by mistake, and massage appropriately after twitching.

4. For a child with hemiplegia caused by illness, parents should not let him stay in bed or at home all the time. They should encourage the child to exercise more, not be afraid of falling, and give him confidence. For sick babies, family encouragement and care are particularly important.

Because children's immune system and blood brain barrier are not yet mature, they are more likely to suffer from viral encephalitis. Therefore, Deputy Chief Physician Zhang Hui suggested that babies with weak immunity should exercise more at ordinary times to improve their disease resistance, and pay attention to preventing colds and intestinal infections. Parents should vaccinate their babies against measles, rubella, mumps and other vaccines on time. It is the absolute principle to prevent problems before they occur.