Adenovirus is highly contagious/no specific medicine/repeated fever/spread through swimming pools/recent surge/one hospital has 7 times more cases than the same period last year
2024-07-07 11:45
Repeated high fever, no fever, accompanied by sore throat... Recently, many children have been infected with adenovirus! Zhuji Central Hospital in Zhejiang Province has received more than 700 cases in a month. Infected children will have repeated and frequent high fever, mostly above 39°C. After the fever subsides, it rises again quickly and lasts for about 1 week. Sometimes even taking antipyretics is difficult to reduce to normal temperature. There are also symptoms such as diarrhea, vomiting, sore throat, red eyes, and mental depression. It is understood that in June this year, the pediatric department of Zhuji Central Hospital received more than 700 children with adenovirus infection, and more than 90 people were hospitalized due to complications caused by adenovirus infection. "In previous years, the number of patients with adenovirus infection in the hospital's pediatric department was only about 100, and this year the number of patients has increased sharply." Adenovirus is mainly transmitted through respiratory droplets, followed by close contact and fecal-oral transmission. It is highly contagious and the population is generally susceptible. According to the doctor, adenovirus infection can generally heal itself. There is currently no specific medicine, and only symptomatic treatment is needed. Except for the use of antipyretics (such as ibuprofen or acetaminophen) when fever causes discomfort, basically no other drugs are needed, especially various antibiotics. Data: According to news reports in August 2022, 140 children in Leshan, Sichuan, developed high fever and cough symptoms after swimming lessons, and many of them were sent to the hospital for adenovirus positive. 21 children in Shifang, Sichuan were also infected with adenovirus after swimming. From clinical experience, children usually have no significant symptoms when they are first infected with adenovirus, and symptoms usually appear 2-14 days (average 3-8 days) after infection. Respiratory tract infections are mainly manifested by persistent high fever, with body temperature mostly above 39°C, which rises quickly after the fever subsides; listlessness, poor complexion, and poor appetite; there may be wheezing in the lungs, which is more common in infants and young children aged 6 months to 2 years. Children with gastrointestinal infections are prone to loose stools or watery stools, and may also have symptoms such as vomiting and fever. In a few children, diarrhea can last for several months. Children with eye infections will experience symptoms such as high fever, sore throat, and stinging eyes. The resulting keratoconjunctivitis is self-limiting (i.e. it can heal on its own). The occurrence of corneal opacity may prolong the course of the disease, but will not cause permanent damage to vision.
In comparison, children with mild symptoms have high fever (above 39°C) and cough and wheeze, and their body temperature usually returns to normal within 7-11 days, and other symptoms disappear as well. Children with severe symptoms have high fever for 2-4 weeks, with some having a maximum body temperature of over 40°C. Difficulty breathing usually begins 3-5 days after the onset of the disease, accompanied by systemic poisoning symptoms, mental depression or irritability, irritability, and even convulsions.
If the adenovirus infection is severe and poorly controlled, the condition may worsen, such as respiratory failure, toxic encephalitis or encephalopathy, acute respiratory distress syndrome, sepsis, mediastinal emphysema or subcutaneous gas, gastrointestinal dysfunction, etc. More serious cases may lead to the death of the child.
Since the immune systems of infants and school-age children are not yet fully developed and they lack the corresponding protective antibodies for adenovirus, once they are infected with adenovirus, they are more likely to develop severe infections than adults. In other words, adenovirus infection can be fatal to children and should not be taken lightly. The main reason why swimming pools cause the spread of adenovirus is that swimming pools are humid, and their humidity and temperature are very suitable for bacterial reproduction and viral transmission. Especially for indoor swimming pools that lack direct sunlight, if they are not strictly disinfected with ultraviolet rays or chlorine-containing disinfectants (adenoviruses require ultraviolet irradiation for more than 30 minutes, or the use of chlorine-containing disinfectants to be inactivated), when adenovirus carriers enter the swimming pool, children in the swimming pool may be directly or indirectly exposed to contaminated water, objects, etc., which may cause adenovirus infection.
In view of this, we recommend that parents try not to take children under 2 years old to public swimming pools. For children who really need to swim, parents should take the following precautions to avoid the risk of infection as much as possible.
1. Choose a swimming place with a health license; 2. Before swimming, check whether the pool water is clear, whether there are floating objects in the water, whether there is sediment on the bottom of the pool, etc.; 3. Wear goggles, swimming cap, etc. during swimming, do not share bathing items with others, and do not rub your eyes with your hands; 4. After swimming, rinse your body and brush your teeth and rinse your mouth as soon as possible to prevent the virus from entering the respiratory and digestive systems.
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