Chapter 5Diarrhoea

Case II

Case study: Chandra

Chandra, 2 year old presented from health clinic with 4 day history of profuse diarrhoea. Vomiting everything for 2 days. Lethargic and not able to drink for 1 day.

What are the stages in the management of any sick child?

Stages in the management of a sick child (Ref. Chart 1, p. xxii)

1. Triage

2. Emergency treatment

3. History and examination

4. Laboratory investigations, if required

5. Main diagnosis and other diagnoses

6. Treatment

7. Supportive care

8. Monitoring

9. Discharge planning

10. Follow-up

What emergency and priority signs have you noticed?

Temperature: 37.2°C, pulse: 145/min, weak and thready, RR: 50/ min, capillary refill time: 3-4 seconds; mouth: dry mucus membranes; eyes: sunken, dry, no tears; skin pinch goes back very slowly

Triage

Emergency signs (Ref. p. 2,6)

• Obstructed breathing• Severe respiratory distress• Central cyanosis• Signs of shock• Coma• Convulsions• Severe dehydration

Priority signs (Ref. p. 6)• Tiny baby• Temperature• Trauma• Pallor• Poisoning• Pain (severe)• Respiratory distress• Restless, irritable, lethargic • Referral• Malnutrition• Oedema of both feet• Burns

What emergency treatment does Chandra need?

Emergency treatment

• Airway management?

• Oxygen?

• Intravenous fluids?

• Anticonvulsants?

• Immediate investigations?

Emergency treatment

□How do you treat signs of shock?

Give IV fluids (Ref. Chart 7, p. 13)– Insert an IV line (and draw blood for

immediate investigations such as: haemoglobin, blood sugar)

– Attach Ringer's lactate or normal saline (0.9% NaCl) – make sure the infusion is running well

– Infuse 20ml/kg as rapidly as possible– Reassess child after appropriate volume has

run in

Do not use 5% Glucose alone or solutions containing only 0.18% NaCl

If peripheral vein access can’t be obtained

Femoral venous access (Ref. p. 342)

Intraosseus (Ref. p. 340)

Intraosseus needle, if not available use 19 or 21 G needle

Emergency treatment (continued)

Switch to following treatment if child's pulse becomesslower or the capillary refill faster (Ref. Chart 11, p.

17):

Give 70ml/kg Ringer's lactate solution (or normal saline) over 2,5 hours

Total volume for Chandra: 850ml (340ml/h) Reassess the child every 1-2 hours Give ORS as soon as the child can drink Reassess the child after 3 hours and classify

dehydration

Give emergency treatment until the patient is stable

Chandra had been well 5 days ago, but then he began to have loose watery stools 6-8 times a day. His mother reduced his intake of fluids and feed as he was having diarrhoea and she thought this might make this worse. On the second day he was taken to a local medical shop where he received a syrupy medicine and a packet of oral rehydration solution.

His diarrhoea did not improve, still 6-8 times each day. He started vomiting on the third day. He was then taken to the district hospital, as he had become lethargic and had stopped eating and drinking altogether. There was no blood or pus in the diarrhoeal stool.

History

Chandra was ill-looking and floppy. He was still unable to drink.Vital signs: temperature: 37.2°C, pulse: 120/min, RR: 40/minWeight: 11 kgCapillary refill time: 2 secondsMouth: dry mucus membranesEyes: still sunken, dry, no tearsSkin: decreased skin turgor (skin pinch goes back in 3 seconds)Chest: air entry was good bilaterally and there were no added soundsAbdomen: scaphoid, soft, bowel sounds were active and there was no organomegalyNeurology: lethargic, floppy, there was no neck stiffness and no other focal signs

Examination after stabilisation

Classification of the severity of dehydration in children with diarrhoea • Rapid assessment of hydration status and classification of

severity of dehydration in children with diarrhoea:

Classification Signs or symptoms

Severe

dehydration

Two or more of the following signs:

• lethargy/unconsciousness

• sunken eyes

• unable to drink or drinking poorly

• skin pinch goes back very slowly (>2 seconds)

Some

dehydration

Two or more of the following signs:

• restlessness, irritability

• sunken eyes

• drinks eagerly, thirsty

• skin pinch goes back slowly

No

dehydration

Not enough signs to classify as some or severe dehydration

(Ref. Table 12, p. 128)

(Ref. p. 128)

Poor skin turgor

(Ref. p. 127)

Differential diagnoses

• List possible causes of the illness • Main diagnosis• Secondary diagnoses • Use references to confirm (Ref. p. 127)

Differential diagnoses (continued)

• Acute (watery) diarrhoea• Cholera• Dysentery• Persistent diarrhoea• Diarrhoea with severe malnutrition• Diarrhoea associated with recent antibiotic

use• Intussusception

Additional questions on history

• Diarrhoea

– frequency of stools

– number of days

– blood in stools

• Local reports of cholera outbreak

• Recent antibiotic or other drug treatment

• Attacks of crying with pallor in an infant

Further examination based on differential diagnoses

Look for:• Blood in stool• Severe malnutrition• Abdominal mass• Abdominal distension

What investigations would you like to do to make your

diagnosis ?

At this stage no additional investigations

are necessary

Diagnosis

Summary of findings: Examination: lethargy, sunken

eyes, decreased skin tugor, unable to drink

History: 4 day of profuse diarrhoea and vomiting everything for 2 days.

Acute diarrhoea with severe dehydration

How would you treat Chandra after stabilisation?

Treatment• Diarrhoea treatment Plan C (Ref. Chart 13, p.

131)

• Antibiotic treatment is rarely necessary (Ref. p. 126)

Only for: Dysentery (mostly Shigella) Cholera Neonates with diarrhoea and fever

• Antidiarrhoeal agents Never necessary and often harmful

What supportive care and monitoring are required?

Supportive Care

• All children should start to receive some ORS (about 5ml/kh/hour) by cup when they can drink without difficulty

• If the child is normally breastfed, encourage the mother to continue breastfeeding frequently

• When severe dehydration is corrected, prescribe zinc

Monitoring

• Reassess every 15-30 minutes until strong radial pulse is present (Ref. Chart 13 p. 131)

• Reassess skin pinch, capillary refill, consciousness, ability to drink - hourly

• If signs of severe dehydration are still present, repeat IV fluid infusion as outlined earlier

• If the child is improving but still shows signs of some dehydration, discontinue IV treatment and give ORS for 4 hours (Treatment Plan B)

• If there are no signs of dehydration, follow Treatment Plan A

Summary• Chandra was rehydrated with intravenous fluids

followed by oral rehydration solution.

• He was discharged when he was alert, able to drink and eat, and had less frequent episodes of diarrhoea.

• At the time of discharge his mother was given advice on how to give extra fluid, to continue feeding and to return for follow up.

• She was also given a Mother’s card containing this information and two packets of oral rehydration solution.