Hot weather, hospitalizations of children increase

(Baonghean) - The hot weather in recent days, with temperatures ranging from 35-38 degrees Celsius, has disrupted people's daily lives and increased the number of hospitalized children. On May 4-5, Nghe An Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital received over 1,000 patients per day compared to 300-400 patients during the 6-day holiday. Hospitalized children mainly suffered from digestive and respiratory diseases.

Waiting for visit and examination at the Examination Department of Nghe An Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital (morning of May 5). Photo: D.N

At the hospital's Respiratory Department, to accommodate 96 inpatients, the department had to place beds along the corridor to limit double occupancy to avoid cross-infection. The largest increase in patients is in the Gastroenterology Department. Currently, the department has 22 patients being treated, nearly double the number of normal days. Most of the cases are children with gastrointestinal diseases caused by viruses.

Nguyen Duy Anh, 10 months old in Nghi Hoa commune (Nghi Loc), was hospitalized with symptoms of fever, vomiting and diarrhea many times a day. The baby's mother, Ms. Dang Thi Anh, said that she gave the baby medicine but it did not help, the baby showed signs of fatigue so the family took the baby to the hospital. In the case of diarrhea, in hot weather, fatigue occurs due to dehydration.

According to Dr. Tran Van Cuong, Deputy Director of the Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital, high environmental temperatures make children sweat easily, so their bodies are easily dehydrated. Hot weather also makes children eat less, leading to a decrease in resistance. On the other hand, hot weather creates favorable conditions for intermediate species such as flies and mosquitoes to develop and viruses and bacteria to multiply, causing diseases of the digestive and respiratory tracts. Children with weak resistance are susceptible to many diseases at the same time from digestive tract and rhinitis, pharyngitis, otitis media, etc. When children have respiratory and digestive diseases, the initial symptom is usually fever. Therefore, doctors' advice during hot weather and high temperatures is to be on guard against high fever leading to convulsions.

At the Department of Infectious Diseases, Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital, there are currently 22/66 children being treated at the department with symptoms of high fever and convulsions, mainly caused by respiratory viruses. Nguyen Huu Hung, 2 years old, in Dong Vinh ward (Vinh city), was hospitalized with a high fever and convulsions. This is a child with a history of convulsions, but in hot weather, parents could not control their child's activities, leading to a recurrence of the above condition. Ms. Nguyen Thi Thu Hoai, Hung's mother, said that for nearly a week now, the weather has been hot, the child has been eating less, and often runs and sweats a lot, so he is tired. The child has had a fever for 2 days now, but his mother often has the habit of using her hand to check if the child has a fever or not. Because of the hot weather, Ms. Hoai did not feel the child's fever, and before giving him medicine, the child had a convulsion.

Visiting pediatric patients at the Department of Infectious Diseases, NA Maternity and Pediatrics Hospital. Photo: D.N

Another case is that of Nguyen Linh Dan, 15 months old, in Cua Nam ward (Vinh city). Although the family monitored the child's health, took the child's temperature and gave him fever-reducing medicine, the fever could not be reduced and because they did not take him to a medical facility in time, he had a seizure.

Dr. Nguyen Van Son, Head of the Department of Infectious Diseases at the Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital, recommends: Initial treatment for children with fever is very important, by giving them the right antipyretics and rehydration. In addition, parents can perform simple fever-reducing techniques for their children by wiping them cool, placing them in a cool place, loosening their clothes, etc. It is necessary to use a thermometer to monitor the child's condition. In reality, there are some cases where children do not respond to some antipyretics, making it difficult to stop the fever. In these cases, parents should take their children to the nearest medical facility for treatment. Although recently, the department has not had any serious complications due to high fever or convulsions. However, the risk of complications due to high fever and convulsions is very high and leaves sequelae such as epilepsy, affecting brain development, etc.

To effectively prevent diseases for children in hot weather like now, doctors advise to increase children's resistance with a reasonable diet, full of nutrients and clean hygiene for children. Give children plenty of water at the right temperature, do not give children too cold water. On the other hand, on hot days, do not take children out too much, limit contact with crowded places to avoid sources of infection. In hot weather, children often sweat a lot, so you should wipe them promptly, avoid the case of sweat seeping back and causing illness for children. Families using fans and air conditioners should use them properly, at the right temperature. When children have symptoms of fever, prolonged cough, they need to be taken immediately to the nearest medical facility for examination, treatment and purchase of medicine according to the doctor's prescription; do not arbitrarily buy medicine outside for children to drink, it can easily affect the liver, kidneys... and endanger life.

Dinh Nguyet