One of the serious, dangerous diseases found in children is rickets. Symptoms, treatment in infants, young children should be known to all responsible modern parents in order to identify in time - the time has come to seek help from a qualified doctor.
General view
Before dealing with symptoms, treatment of rickets, you should understand the essence of the disease. The term is used to denote a disease in which metabolic processes involving calcium, phosphorus in the body are disturbed. Rickets provokes a deficiency of vitamin D (calciferol). If a lack of connection becomes chronic, there is a high probability of numerous disorders. Cartilage, bone tissue do not receive the necessary for the normal development, functioning of calcium, phosphorus, which leads to irreversible changes. The formation of tissues, organs, their degree of mineralization suffers.
Some believe that the symptoms of rickets in the photo can only be seen in the medical archives of many years ago, but now the disease has already lost its relevance. Unfortunately, this opinion is erroneous. And nowadays, children find themselves in conditions of calciferol deficiency, improper nutrition and care, which leads to a variety of pathologies. In our country, in recent years, the standard of living has become much higher, the social and economic situation has stabilized, so some experts believe that there is a possibility that soon rickets and the truth will become a relic of the past. And yet you need to understand: if this happens in the future, then not right now. This means that parents must know the symptoms of the disease in order to seek qualified help on time. If the pathology develops in the baby, it turns into a serious threat to the future person, especially without the correct and timely treatment.
Features of the disease
Symptoms of rickets in children (6 years, a year or two - in a word, of any age) are due to the characteristics of this pathology, namely, damage to the musculoskeletal system. The greatest risk is at the age of five years and younger, although medicine knows cases where rickets was diagnosed even in adulthood. Degradation, deformation of bone tissue is explained by the lack of minerals - calcium, phosphorus. Normally, substances should come with food, but for their absorption in the body must be present calciferol, which forms in the skin under the influence of ultraviolet radiation. If nutrition is insufficient or vitamin deficiency is observed, the risk of the disease increases.
In addition to the natural processes of vitamin formation under the influence of ultraviolet rays, calciferol enters the children's body with food. To prevent the symptoms of rickets in a child, it is important to balance the diet so that the diet is complete. If the baby lives in the northern regions, where the winter is long, the sunny day is short, it is reasonable to include more dairy products in the diet, as well as use pharmacy vitamin supplements. Recently, milk enriched with vitamin D is on sale. It is he who should be preferred. Calciferol is formed from cholesterol derivatives, so the child should not be restricted in nutrition.
Where does trouble come from?
Symptoms of rickets in a child may appear if the nutrition is insufficient, defective. Provoking factors are:
- too short exposure to sunlight;
- metabolic processes erroneously occurring in the body;
- lack of calciferol, cholesterol.
There is a higher likelihood of rickets symptoms in a baby who weighed 4 kg or more at birth, as well as in a baby transferred early to artificial feeding. Rickets can provoke:
- complicated birth;
- the use of non-adapted products for artificial feeding;
- too fast growth, weight gain;
- lack of walks, limited mobility, activity;
- problems in the digestive tract;
- the use of anticonvulsants.
With a high probability, symptoms of rickets in a child undergoing treatment with seizures may appear.
The risk group for illness includes premature babies - often the primary symptoms can be seen already in the second week of life. The tendency is due to the weakness of the internal systems, the underdevelopment of the digestive tract. Physiological immaturity does not allow the normal absorption of food.
Rare case
It is known that the symptoms of rickets in infants may be due to the congenital nature of this disease. In practice, this is very rare, and is due to placental insufficiency. There is a higher likelihood of congenital rickets in a child whose mother during the gestation period too limited herself in food, was not able to fully eat.
Another rare form of the disease is rickets, which does not depend on the concentration of calciferol in the child's body. Analyzes show that the minerals and vitamins in the patient’s tissues are present in an adequate amount, but nevertheless, the symptoms of rickets are disturbing. In infants and older children, this can be explained by the insufficient functioning of the kidneys, liver, due to which vital substances, although they are, do not participate in chemical reactions. A similar outcome can be provoked by some medications - barbiturates, corticosteroids. Under the influence of their active components, minerals do not transform into a form accessible for capture by cells.
Mindfulness is the key to future health
The main difficulty in treating the disease is that the first symptoms of rickets in a child (4 months, sometimes earlier, sometimes later) are almost invisible, so the older generation simply does not pay enough attention to this. Usually adults think that the baby is naughty for no particular reason and you just need to tolerate - "this is such a period." This is also evidenced by many case histories with photos. Symptoms of rickets in infants can be manifested by the following behavioral features:
- the child has difficulty falling asleep, the rhythm of sleep goes astray;
- the baby is shy, anxious for no reason;
- the state is inhibited, the patient is characterized by lethargy, there is no interest in the environment;
- the child is irritable, capricious, although there is no obvious explanation for this.
A rather striking symptom, a sign of rickets in children under one year of age (treatment at this age is already required if the disease can be diagnosed) is an increased activity of the sweat glands. This is especially noticeable during feeding and when the baby is sleeping - if you touch the pillow, it will be wet to the touch. The excreted liquids have a pungent, unpleasant odor. Due to profuse sweating on the back of the head, hairs begin to fall out.
What to look for?
Among those showing that treatment is needed, symptoms, signs of rickets in children, convulsions that are more pronounced during sleep should be mentioned. The child suffers from stool disorders, both constipation and diarrhea are possible. The patient's skin itches, irritates, and the genitals emit an unpleasant ammonia odor. A child with rickets suffers from irritation of the skin of this part of the body; diaper rash often occurs here.
Mostly, such signs can be seen already a few months after birth. Both at the very youngest age and in older children (for example, in children 4 years old), the symptoms of rickets often appear for the first time in autumn or winter, at the very beginning of spring, when it is cold outside.
Under the influence of the disease, the patient becomes moody, the tendency to demand the fulfillment of any desire increases. At the same time, sweating provokes nervousness, the body itches, and the skin is irritated. You should urgently go to the doctor if baldness of the neck in children of 4 years is observed. Symptoms of rickets, left without due attention, lead to the rapid progress of the disease. If the disease develops at a tender age, by the first half of life it will be possible to observe the full picture of the disease. At an older age, children are usually somewhat more resistant to rickets, however, it all depends on the individual characteristics of the body.
Disease progression
If the primary signs were ignored, the symptoms of rickets in a one-year-old child include:
- developmental delay;
- late acquisition of skills to rise, walk;
- slow formation of primary teeth;
- fontanel closes much later than in healthy children.
Both parents and the local pediatrician should pay attention to this. If rickets is suspected, blood samples are taken for analysis. You can diagnose the disease if the blood shows a high phosphatase activity, phosphorus deficiency.
Danger: no exaggeration!
If the symptoms of rickets in a one-year-old child are left without proper attention, over time they themselves become pathologies, and it is impossible to cure them. Development occurs with serious disabilities. In the future, such a child may well become disabled. The processes are irreversible. Due to the disease, bone tissue is severely affected, and the structure of cartilage is disturbed. Patients have weakened immunity, improperly formed internal organs. If the disease has developed for the first time months after birth, such a baby is more susceptible to viruses, bacteria, constantly sick.
Complications can be noted if there is a chronic lack of iron in the blood, and the liver and spleen are enlarged. The patient has too mobile joints, and muscle tissue is characterized by a weak tone. This leads to the formation of a “frog belly”, which is especially noticeable if you put the patient on his back - the stomach will be flat, hanging from the sides. Complications manifest themselves:
- curvature of the legs;
- violation of the shape of the chest;
- head enlargement;
- softening of the cranial bones;
- the appearance of growths on the ribs.
If you study the medical history, you can see from the photo: the symptoms of rickets, the treatment of which did not start in a timely manner, become the cause of the formation of “bracelets”, that is, specific thickenings on the wrists, ankles. In most patients, the spine is curved.
Further worse
The lack of adequate medical therapy causes various serious consequences for the health of the child. Curvature of the spinal column initiates the formation of a hump, thickening of the bones. The pelvis is underdeveloped, because of which the cartilage tissue does not form correctly. Over time, this becomes the cause of joint dysplasia. At the same time, flat feet are observed. In many patients with rickets, the skull is asymmetric.
All the described complications are a sufficient reason to obtain the status of a disabled person. Symptoms will accompany the patient for life - all skeletal deformations are stable and irreversible.
What to do?
To diagnose the disease, it is necessary to take blood samples for analysis and prescribe some instrumental examinations. The pediatrician sends for examination to an orthopedist, surgeon - these are the doctors who work with children with rickets. To identify all the features of the patient's condition, the following examinations are done:
- take blood for biochemistry for analysis for mineral content;
- conduct CT scan, take an x-ray, identifying lesions.
Information obtained from examinations is the basis for selecting the optimal therapeutic approach. If studies have shown that there is no rickets, but there is a high probability of its development in the near future, the doctor prescribes preventive measures.
Attention to the little things!
Such cases are known when the disease proceeds in a mild form - as a rule, at the same time they talk about hidden rickets in a child. Symptoms are indicated above - late closure of the fontanel, improperly growing teeth, slow development. At the same time, complications do not manifest themselves so clearly and quickly as in children who are ill in a severe form, so many parents do not consider it necessary to treat the problem. This approach is fundamentally wrong. Even if rickets is mild, not noticeable, and deviations from the norm are few, it is important to start timely treatment to prevent consequences - and they are far from always predictable.
Some people think that mild rickets do not need to be treated, because this disease itself has long been defeated, is very rare, which means there is nothing dangerous in it. Such reasoning is erroneous - although the frequency is small, the consequences are still serious, and they can be prevented if you contact the doctor in time. Do not hesitate or be shy - for any suspicion, you need to come to the reception and insist on a complete check of the child's body, especially if there are factors provoking the disease.
Therapy: where to start?
The basic task in the treatment of rickets is to normalize metabolic processes in the body, to provide the child with all the trace elements necessary for the normal development of tissues and organs. The classic approach is to use vitamin D for food. On the pharmacy shelves you can see a fairly wide variety of water and oil extracts enriched with this compound, as well as tablets. To choose what exactly to accept, it is necessary to provide to the doctor. The tablets are not intended for very young patients, and water essences are considered somewhat more toxic than oily ones. Of the popular names, mention should be made of Wiganthol and Devisol. Such drugs are on sale in almost any modern pharmacy. The doctor at the reception will tell you what the dose should be, according to which scheme to use the composition in food.
Conservative treatment quickly shows an improvement in the condition of the child. To control the situation, X-rays are regularly taken and blood is checked for biochemistry. Literally one week is already enough to increase the amount of phosphorus in the body if the child takes a high-quality medication with calciferol. Alkaline phosphatase becomes less active, the concentration of calcium in the circulatory system decreases. The x-ray shows positive changes - the ossicles are more noticeable, the tissues are stronger, you can see new directions of the pineal glands.
Continuing therapy
To enhance the effectiveness of the conservative method and consolidate its result, the child is prescribed physiotherapy. This helps to activate the processes of development, growth, stimulate a more efficient assimilation of the necessary microscopic elements. With rickets, it is shown to move a lot, to work actively with joints, muscles. Physiotherapy is prescribed only to patients six months of age or older. The program is chosen by the doctor, starting from the characteristics of the patient's condition. As a rule, therapy is complex: at the same time, therapeutic massage, water and mud procedures, electrophoresis with calcium, phosphoric ions are prescribed. Be sure to do the procedure under an ultraviolet lamp to activate the production of calciferol in the patient's body. In addition, gymnastics will benefit.
In rare cases, the doctor recommends referring to the possibilities of surgery. This is true if the disease is severe, therapy with vitamin and mineral complexes does not show the desired effect, massage and ultraviolet also do not give a pronounced result. As a rule, this is observed if the internal organs have already undergone major changes. By means of modern surgical techniques, it is possible to eliminate the deformation of bone tissues, to return to the joints, bones an anatomically correct shape and position. The rehabilitation period after such an operation can be long, in many respects the success depends on a properly selected diet, providing the patient with all the necessary minerals, vitamins, and useful compounds.
Consequences and Opportunities
If you managed to notice the symptoms of rickets in time and consult a qualified doctor, start treatment, there is no threat to life. The stage at which the therapeutic course was started directly determines the consequences, complications, and the future of the patient. If the prevention of rickets is carried out , the disease can be successfully prevented - even if the child is at risk. It should be remembered that adequate treatment helps to smooth over the unpleasant symptoms of the disease over the years. Some consequences remain for life if you start treatment late, but with a timely start to the course, it is likely that by the school period all developmental disorders will be exhausted. Of course, this applies only to the mild form of the disease.
It is known that the lack of adequate treatment, even when the disease develops in a mild form, over time leads to health problems. In particular, such people have bad teeth all their lives, and the curvature of the lower extremities also remains. Delay in physical, mental development is possible, and its degree depends on how the disease progressed. If pathological changes were not accompanied by treatment, over time, the child is disturbed by flat feet, curvature of the spine, pelvic deformities. Girls who have undergone mild rickets at a tender age, in the future face complications during childbirth - this is due to the narrowness of the pelvis, improper bone formation.
In the school period, children who suffered rickets shortly after birth are more likely to suffer from poor vision, iron deficiency in the blood, suffer from colds, and catch infections. In adulthood, often raised bone fragility, osteoporosis.