Getting To The Bottom Of Your Child's Explosive Diarrhea: How Your Primary Care Physician Will Figure It Out
Posted on: 23 June 2016
Having children means having to deal with some of their more unpleasant bodily functions and illnesses. When your child has a case of explosive diarrhea, for example, you will undoubtedly have quite the mess wherever the child was when he or she released their bowels. Once you get past the shock and disgust, you may want to take your child to your primary care physician right away. Here is how the physician will get to the bottom of your child's explosive diarrhea and find out exactly what caused it so you can avoid this in the future.
Taking Vitals to Rule out Infection
If your child has an infection internally or a contagious illness, then taking your child's vitals is one way to determine if the diarrhea is a result of something unseen. Diarrhea of any kind accompanied by a fever can indicate a bacterial or viral infection, in which case your doctor may just prescribe lots of fluids, anti-inflammatories to reduce the fever, and bed rest (close to a toilet). If there are no indications in any of the vitals that there is an infection or contagion, then the doctor moves on to diet.
Asking Questions about What Your Child Consumed in the Last Twenty-Four Hours
Children have sensitive stomachs. The doctor may ask what your child had to eat in the last twenty-four to forty-eight hours. This may either indicate that your child has a sensitivity or allergy to a particular food or that he/she ate far too much of one item and that is the reason for the explosive diarrhea. For example, if your child ate more than three full-sized pieces of fibrous fruit the previous day (lots of apples, melon, etc.), it could be the culprit. A new food that your child tried for the first time could also be the problem if your child is allergic to it and you were unaware of this allergy/sensitivity before giving it to your child.
Testing for Allergies and Sensitivities
Your primary care physician could certainly order some tests regarding foods or drinks that your child consumed, but usually it is less costly and less time-consuming to test this on your own at home. If a food sensitivity is suspected, you could avoid that food to see if it helps clear up your child's gastrointestinal issues. If you think he or she just ate or drank too much of something, cut way back on consumption of that item to see if that makes a difference. Whichever approach seems to help will tell you and the doctor what the problem was, and then you can avoid any more cases of explosive diarrhea.
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