Common causes of Acute Diarrhea

What are the most frequent causes of acute diarrhea?

The most common cause of acute diarrhea is an infection - viruses, bacteria and parasites. Bacteria can also cause acute food poisoning. A third important cause of acute diarrhea is to start a new medication.

Viral gastroenteritis

Viral gastroenteritis (viral infection of the stomach and small intestine) is the leading cause of acute diarrhea worldwide. The symptoms of viral gastroenteritis (nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps and diarrhea) usually takes 48-72 hours. Unlike bacterial enterocolitis (bacterial infection of the small intestine and colon), usually in patients with viral gastroenteritis do not have blood or pus in the stool, fever little or not.

viral gastroenteritis can occur as a sporadic form (one person) or in an epidemic form (among groups of individuals). sporadic diarrhea is probably caused by several different viruses and is believed to be spread by contact from person to person. The most common cause of epidemic diarrhea (eg, on cruise ships) is an infection by a family of viruses called calicivirus where the genus Norovirus is the most common (for example, "Norwalk"). Caliciviruses transmitted through food contaminated by ill food handlers or by contact from person to person.

Food Poisoning

Food poisoning is a brief illness caused by toxins produced by bacteria. The toxins cause abdominal pain (cramps) and vomiting and also cause the intestine to secrete large quantities of water, leading to diarrhea. The symptoms of food poisoning usually last less than 24 hours. With some bacteria, toxins in food before consumption, while other bacteria, toxins produced in the gut after a meal is eaten.

Symptoms usually appear within hours of food poisoning caused by toxins formed in food before eating. It takes longer to manifest itself when the toxins are formed in the intestine (because it takes time for the bacteria produce toxins). Therefore, in the latter case, symptoms usually appear after 7-15 hours.

Staphylococcus aureus is an example of bacteria produce toxins in food before being eaten. Usually the food contaminated with aureus (such as salad, meat or sandwiches with mayonnaise), leaving the UN refrigerator overnight at room temperature. Staph bacteria are multiplying, and food and produce toxins. Clostridium perfringens is an example of a bacterium, which tells of food (usually canned), and produce toxins in the small intestine after you eat contaminated food.

Traveler's diarrhea

There are many strains of E. coli. Most bacteria E. coli are normal inhabitants of the small intestine and colon and are non-pathogenic, meaning they do not cause disease in the intestines. However, these E. coli nonpathogenic cause illness if they spread outside the bowel, for example, in the urinary tract (where they cause infections of the bladder or kidney) or blood (sepsis).

Some strains of E. coli is pathogenic (meaning they can cause diseases of the small intestine and colon). These pathogenic strains of E. coli that cause diarrhea produce toxins (called enterotoxigenic E. coli or ETEC) or by invading and inflaming the lining of the small intestine and colon and cause enterocolitis (called enteropathogenic E. coli or EPEC). Traveler's diarrhea is often caused by a strain of E. coli ETEC produces a toxin that causes diarrhea.

Tourists visiting foreign countries with warm climates and sanitation (Mexico, parts of Africa, etc.) can acquire ETEC from eating contaminated foods, such as fruits, vegetables, seafood, raw meat, water and ice. Toxins produced by ETEC cause sudden onset of diarrhea, abdominal cramps, nausea and sometimes vomiting. These symptoms usually appear 3-7 days after arrival in the country and usually disappear in three days. Occasionally, other bacteria or parasites can cause diarrhea in travelers (eg, Shigella, Giardia, Campylobacter). Diarrhea caused by these other agencies usually lasts longer than 3 days.

Bacterial enterocolitis

Pathogenic bacteria usually invade the small intestine and colon and cause enterocolitis (inflammation of the small intestine and colon). Bacterial enterocolitis is characterized by signs of inflammation (blood or pus in the stool, fever), abdominal pain and diarrhea. Campylobacter jejuni is the most common bacteria that causes bacterial enterocolitis in the United States not to cause enterocolitis are Shigella, Salmonella and E. coli. These bacteria are usually acquired through ingestion of contaminated water or eating contaminated food such as vegetables, poultry and dairy products.

Enterocolitis caused by the bacterium Clostridium difficile is unusual, because it often leads to antibiotic treatment. Clostridium difficile is the most common nosocomial infection (infection acquired in hospital) because of diarrhea. Unfortunately, the infection is increasing among individuals without antibiotics or were admitted to hospital.

E. coli O157: H7 is a strain of E. coli, which produces a toxin that causes bloody enterocolitis (haemorrhagic enterocolitis). It has been an outbreak of hemorrhagic enterocolitis famous in the United States dates back to contaminated ground beef burger (and so is also called ulcerative hamburger). About 5% of patients infected with E. coli O157: H7, especially children, can develop hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS), a syndrome that can lead to kidney failure. Some suggest that the prolonged use of anti-diarrheal agents, or the use of antibiotics may increase the likelihood of developing HUS.

Parasites

Parasitic infections are common causes of infectious diarrhea in the United States by Giardia lamblia occurs in people who walk in the mountains or travel abroad and is transmitted through contaminated drinking water. Giardia infection is usually associated with inflammation, no blood or pus in the stool, fever and small. Infection with the amoeba (amoebic dysentery) usually occurs during foreign travel to underdeveloped countries and is associated with signs of inflammation - blood or pus in the stool and fever.

Cryptosporidium is a parasite, resulting in diarrhea, which is spreading in contaminated water, because it can survive chlorination. Cyclospora is a parasite, resulting in diarrhea, which has been associated with contaminated raspberries from Guatemala.

Drugs

The drug-induced diarrhea is common because many drugs cause diarrhea. The rate of drug-induced diarrhea is diarrhea that begins shortly after drug treatment was started. The drugs most commonly cause diarrhea are antacids and supplements containing magnesium. Other classes of drugs that cause diarrhea include:

nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs),

chemotherapy drugs,

antibiotics,

medicines control irregular heart beats (antiarrhythmics), and

medicines for high blood pressure.

Some examples of drugs that often cause diarrhea are:

Misoprostol (Cytotec)

quinidine (Quinaglute, Quinidex)

olsalazine (Dipentum)

Colchicine (Colchicine)

metoclopramide (Reglan) and

cisapride (Propulsid, Motilium).

Common causes of Acute Diarrhea

Common causes of Acute Diarrhea

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