Infectious Colitis
03.05.10
Infectious colitis: A variety of “bugs” may cause colitis. They have developed a variety of ways to overcome our natural defenses and ultimately cause colitis. The germs include these:
• Bacteria: Commonly found in food or contaminated water, bacteria may produce toxins that trigger intestinal cells to secrete salt and water and interfere with their normal functions. Salmonella, Shigella species, Campylobacter jejuni, and Clostridium are examples of bacteria associated with infectious colitis.
• Viruses: Viruses such as rotavirus or Norwalk can damage the mucous membrane lining your intestine and disturb fluid absorption.
• Protozoa: People infected with these tiny organisms may show no symptoms (carrier state), or they may have chronic, mild, loose, bowel movements or acute severe dysentery. Colitis due to E histolytica, also known as amebiasis, has become an important sexually transmitted disease in homosexual men.
Types of colitis include ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s colitis, diversion colitis, ischemic colitis, infectious colitis, fulminant colitis, chemical colitis, microscopic colitis, lymphocytic colitis, and atypical colitis. The risk of developing infectious colitis varies considerably throughout the world and depends on local conditions. Populations in developing countries often live in ramshackle housing without good sanitation. Colon infections are readily transmitted in this setting.
However, in industrialised countries, most inhabitants live in a sanitary environment but other practices facilitate germ transmission such as large-scale food production, distribution retailing practice (fast-food chains…). Hospitalised patients, infants in day care centres, travellers also exhibit an increased susceptibility for infection. vIn most patients coming to the general practitioner or specialist with a history of acute (short history, less than one week) watery diarrhoea with blood or mucus (dysentery), it will be possible to make a diagnosis fairly easily.
Watery diarrhoea is more often of viral aetiology, and at routine bacteriological investigation, cultures will be negative. Watery diarrhoea is the result of a disturbed balance between intestinal secretion and absorption. Viruses can infect and kill villous tip enterocytes and by doing so disturb absorption. Diarrhoea with blood is more often of bacterial origin.
Production of bloody stools means a mucosal break caused by entero-invasive bacteria. Acute bloody diarrhoea however usually begins with watery diarrhoea. Some bacteria can also induce either acute diarrhoea or acute bloody diarrhoea. The differential diagnosis between infectious colitis and other types of colitis is sometimes difficult : in patients coming from tropical or subtropical countries where infections are more likely, a diagnosis of chronic idiopathic inflammatory bowel disease must be made cautiously ; whenever more than one person has been acutely ill at the same moment, a diagnosis of chronic inflammatory bowel disease is unlikely and food poisoning has to be considered; immuno-compromised patients ; elderly patients where one has to consider diverticular disease, ischaemia, malignancy, or a colitis — like picture due to drugs.
Drugs are indeed a common cause of diarrhoea and colitis.
Possibly related posts: (automatically generated)
- Related posts on Amebiasis
- hunter chevrolet 1850 – Latest News
- Cómo dejar de fumar » Blog Archive » El cuartito de los baldes …
- Agentes infecciosos « La cúpula de Galileo
- Related posts on Colon Infections
- Pro Acai Max Review – Does Pro Acai Max Really Work?
Tags: Amebiasis, Carrier State, Colon Infections, Div, Examples Of Bacteria, Family Auto, Family Symbol, Fareast, Fast Food Chains, Fluid Absorption, Font Definitions, Footer, Homosexual Men, Hospitalised Patients, Infectious Colitis, Intestinal Cells, Loose Bowel Movements, Lt, Microscopic Colitis, Mso, Natu, Natural Defenses, Number Position, Orphan, Paper Source, Pitch, Purple Text, Rotavirus, Salt And Water, Sanitary Environment, Scale Food, Span, Style Definitions, Style Name, Text Decoration, Times New Roman, Tiny Organisms, Ulcerative Colitis, Water Bacteria