Reactive pancreatitis in the child: signs, treatment and diet

Inflammatory and infectious diseases rarely pass without a trace to the body. After them, doctors often diagnose reactive pancreatitis. In children, the symptoms of this disease testify to the defeat of the main organ of the digestive system - the pancreas. However, discomfort in the abdomen, belching and heartburn does not always indicate an inflammatory process. If the child complains of pain, you should immediately call a doctor. Self-treatment can result in a complication of the pathological process.

What do you need to know about the disease?

Pancreatitis is one of the most common pancreatic diseases. It happens in both adults and children. The clinical picture and the nature of the pathological process determine its shape - acute or chronic. This state is very dangerous. If you do not take timely steps to eliminate the cause of the disease, you will have to follow a strict diet throughout life.

Reactive pancreatitis in a child is slightly different from the main form of the disease. Its development begins with inflammation of the pancreas. As a result, the work of the body is disrupted, and the functions assigned to it are not fully implemented. Enzymes that participate in the process of splitting food can not pass through the inflamed ducts. They remain in the pancreas and begin to literally digest it from the inside.

Causes of the inflammatory process

Recently, reactive pancreatitis in children is diagnosed more often. Doctors explain this trend by changing the taste preferences of the population. Today, the child's diet consists primarily of products that contain a large number of preservatives, dyes and flavors. These substances negatively affect the work of the pancreas. They provoke a spasm of the ducts of the body, as a result of which enzymes do not enter the digestive tract. Gradually the inflammatory process develops.

Reactive pancreatitis in a child can occur due to recent infectious diseases. For example, ARVI or ARI often act as a trigger mechanism of the pathological process. Another cause of the disease is antibiotic therapy. The use of "Metronidazole" or "Furosemide" in treatment increases the risk of developing the disease.

In rare cases, reactive pancreatitis develops against the background of congenital pancreatic diseases. These include lactase deficiency, cystic fibrosis, an abnormal change in the duodenal passages. Such patients are aware of health problems from an early age, so they follow a special diet and take medications. The probability of inflammation in the pancreas is negligible, but still exists.

The first manifestations of the disease

The signs of reactive pancreatitis in children practically do not differ from the symptoms of the disease in adults. The development of the pathological process is accompanied by severe pain in the epigastric region. The clinical picture is supplemented with nausea, a violation of the stool. Attacks of diarrhea are replaced by constipation. With diarrhea, the stool is liquid, and the stools are covered with a bright coating. Children often complain of dry mouth, strong thirst. Appetite worsens, and some kids at all refuse to eat.

The disease is often accompanied by symptoms of general malaise. The child becomes sluggish and apathetic, loses interest in everything that happens. He always wants to sleep, and the heat does not allow him to do the usual things.

The severity of the symptoms of the disease depends on the age of the patient. The older the child, the stronger the symptoms of ailment. In newborns, pain in the abdomen is expressed by capriciousness and increased motor activity. Reactive pancreatitis in young children is also accompanied by severe discomfort in the navel. However, they can not show the exact place of pain localization. Older children usually complain of severe nausea and vomiting. All these symptoms can serve as the basis for immediate contact with a doctor.

First aid for an attack of pancreatitis

When symptoms of reactive pancreatitis appear, a medical team should be called immediately. Before the arrival of care, you need to carefully place the child on a sofa or bed, to ensure that he is at peace. On the stomach area you can put a cold water bottle. It is not recommended to give the patient analgesics or other medications, as they can lubricate the overall clinical picture. Reactive pancreatitis in children, the symptoms of which are often taken by surprise, is a transient disease. Therefore, its treatment should be treated with all seriousness and responsibility.

Methods of diagnosis

Before starting to treat the disease, a young patient needs to undergo a full medical examination.

1. A general blood test is required to count leukocytes. The number of these elements increases with pancreatitis.
2. The ultrasound of the abdominal cavity organs shows seals in the gland, as well as other pathological changes in the organ.
3. Biochemical analysis of blood allows you to assess the level of enzymes produced by the pancreas.
4. With the help of gastroscopy, a doctor can take the material for a cytological study in the laboratory.

If the tests confirm reactive pancreatitis in a child, treatment of the disease begins immediately.

Basic principles of therapy

Treatment of inflammation in the pancreas requires an integrated approach. Usually it includes taking medicines and following a strict diet. The choice of specific medications for treatment depends on the patient's condition and the characteristics of his body. The patient must be placed in a hospital. During the first few days, he should provide complete peace. The hospital regime during the period of exacerbation of the disease allows you not to suffer the question of what should be the menu in reactive pancreatitis in children.

Parents should strictly adhere to the recommendations of the doctor, because he wants the child only a speedy recovery. Therefore, all restrictions in nutrition can not be considered a whim of a doctor, as it may seem to many. If a small patient already had an attack of reactive pancreatitis, his symptoms showed up, adherence to a strict diet is an integral part of therapy. Otherwise, a relapse may occur.

Diet with inflammation of the pancreas

What needs to be changed in the diet in the diagnosis of "reactive pancreatitis"? A child's diet should not be embarrassed. He should consider it part of the usual way of life, because the main restrictions apply only to harmful products. This list includes fatty and spicy dishes, smoked products and fast food. It is also recommended to exclude chocolate, cocoa and concentrated juices. The remaining rules of dietary nutrition are listed below.

1. It is necessary to provide the pancreas with functional rest. From the diet of a small patient, all stimuli must first be eliminated. Products cooked or steamed should be served in a chopped room temperature.
2. It is important to take care of preserving the energy and nutritional value of the diet. There is no need to feed your baby with protein food alone. The diet should be as varied as possible and also include carbohydrate foods.
3. To eat should be small portions, but often. It is recommended to recall the principles of fractional nutrition. The interval between meals should not exceed four hours.

To prevent new outbreaks of the disease, you need to constantly monitor the diet. Any experiment with food can lead to a new attack and the need to take medicine.

What should nutrition be for reactive pancreatitis?

Children with signs of inflammation are first put on a hunger diet. Within two days, patients are allowed to drink only ordinary mineral water. From the third day of treatment, the ration is supplemented with homemade croutons and tea without sugar, oatmeal on the water. Then you can include jelly, dairy products, stale white bread. On the fifth day of therapy, simple vegetable broths or purees are allowed. Five days later, under the condition of positive dynamics, patients can eat lean meat, steam cutlets. Fresh vegetables and fruits should be introduced into the diet gradually, better the latest. A complete list of approved meals at each stage of the diet should be determined by the attending physician.

Treatment of reactive pancreatitis with medicines

The use of drugs in this disease can stop its progression and stop the symptoms. All medicines included in the standard course of therapy can be divided into two conditional groups:

1. Spasmolytics. This group includes "clean" medications ("No-shpa") and drugs that have analgesics ("Analgin", "Paracetamol") in their composition.
2. Enzyme means. Their action is aimed at improving the digestive process. In this group, drugs are divided into two categories: those containing enzymes (Mezim, Pancreatin) and containing bile (Festal, Ferestal). It is not necessary to abuse drugs, because the body can get used to such artificial help. Preparations from the second group give a good therapeutic effect, but their use is contraindicated in cholelithiasis and exacerbation of gastritis.

To increase the therapeutic effect of medications, doctors recommend taking antacids in addition. They help to reduce the acidity of the stomach, thereby increasing the beneficial effect of drugs.

Treatment with folk remedies

Reactive pancreatitis in a child can not be cured without the use of drugs. However, for relief of symptoms, you can resort to the help of prescriptions of folk healers. Before starting a course of therapy, you should consult your doctor.

One of the popular products in the treatment of pancreatitis is royal jelly. It can be used only if the child does not have an allergy to honey. The duration of therapy is 2-3 months. Then you need to take a short break for a few days. It is recommended to take royal jelly on a teaspoon three times a day. It is better to slowly dissolve the sweet delicacy, rather than swallow it whole.

You can also make homemade kvass from celandine. To make it, you need 3 liters of milk whey. If you can not find it, you can replace it with plain water. The liquid must be poured into a vessel, add a teaspoon of sour cream and sugar. In the gauze pouch should be poured half a glass of celandine grass, put in a jar with water or milk whey. For two weeks you need to stir the kvas daily. If you follow the instructions clearly, the drink should begin to foam on the 10th day. Take kvass for a week on a tablespoon three times a day.

Preventive measures

Not always parents can save their child from the factors contributing to the emergence of reactive pancreatitis. That is why they must explain to the child the seriousness of the disease, tell about the need to follow a special diet.

Many children are sweet. It's cakes and pastries that inflict the hardest blow to the pancreas. One of the measures to prevent the disease is to limit the consumption of sweets. The role of their substitute can be the most common honey. However, with this delicacy it is important not to overdo it. A baby needs two tablespoons of this product, provided there is no allergy. Another important rule is not to overeat. The child should get up from the table with a slight feeling of hunger.

Another way to prevent the disease is the timely treatment of infectious and inflammatory pathologies, gastrointestinal diseases. Very often, against the background of such problems, reactive pancreatitis develops in the child. Only due to competent therapy it is possible to avoid self-destruction of the pancreas. It should be noted that any medication for treatment should be prescribed by a doctor. Independent selection of medicines is strictly prohibited.

Let's sum up the results

Reactive pancreatitis in children, whose symptoms and treatment are described in this article, is considered a dangerous condition. When the first symptoms of the disease appear, you need to urgently seek medical help. Ignoring pathology can lead to unpleasant consequences. Among them, the most disturbing is the self-destruction of the pancreas. Due to late treatment to the doctor in the future, a child may develop diabetes mellitus.