Vomiting in a child without fever and diarrhea

2024 Author: James Gerald | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 14:00

Vomiting in a child without fever and diarrhea is a serious cause for alarm. The only answer to the question of what to do is to see a doctor immediately. Only a specialist is able to prescribe a treatment adequate to the problem.

The mechanism of vomiting in a child

A special center located in the brain is responsible for the gag reflex, and the main cause of the symptom is the received signal impulse. After that, preliminary signs begin:

• nausea;
• increased salivation;
• increased heart rate;
• abnormally rapid (sometimes intermittent) breathing.

The natural bewilderment of what to do if a child has vomiting without fever and diarrhea is caused by established stereotypes about the usual reasons for its appearance - food poisoning or an infectious disease. Then the release of vomit is associated with the presence of a pathogenic agent or food toxins in the body. This is accompanied by diarrhea and fever.

The eruption of stomach contents begins with the activation of the vomiting center. After analyzing the information received and the signal from the medulla oblongata, an attack begins.

First, a contraction of the abdominal press is noted, after which there is a sharp expulsion of its contents from the stomach. Most often these are the remnants of undigested food, to which some blood, pus or bile may be added.

According to Dr. Komarovsky, if the vomiting is single, the parents have no serious cause for concern. This, according to the Kharkov pediatrician, is a spontaneous cleansing of the body, a reaction to large food fractions that are difficult for digestion by an imperfect digestive system, or to toxins accumulated in the body:

1. In the first case, you should revise the diet in accordance with age, exclude exotic components from it that are not characteristic of the food mentality.
2. In the second, there is still reason for concern - the launch of a protective reflex due to accumulated toxins makes you wonder what could have led to such a concentration of hazardous substances that provoked vomiting.
3. A child's vomiting without fever and diarrhea is a particularly alarming symptom and what to do must be addressed immediately.

Usually, along with the emetic mechanism caused by food poisoning or infection, bowel cleansing (diarrhea) is triggered, and fever appears. This is clear evidence that the body is fighting against external aggression.

The absence of the usual parallel symptoms can be caused by various, but dangerous reasons. The actions to be taken are not dictated by the external symptom, but by those that led to the atypical clinical picture.

Causes of the gag reflex

The long list of reasons that can cause spontaneous gastric emptying in a baby does not decrease with age, but increases. In infancy, spitting up is considered normal, removing air and excess milk swallowed, but vomiting is not like it.

And if a child of infancy without fever and diarrhea vomiting, there is only one answer to the question of what to do - an immediate appeal to the pediatrician. In older children, there are several reasons that cause abdominal contraction and gastric emptying.

They can be inherited or in the process of intrauterine development. They are also often acquired after birth. Consider these reasons:

1. Brain. Distinctive features are cyanotic pallor, headache, dizziness and fainting. May be caused by disorders that need to be treated by a pediatric neurologist. It may be indicated by a sudden periodic vomiting, an inherited tendency to migraines, an imbalance of character, or inadequate reactions.
2. In early childhood, the appearance of such symptoms is characteristic of undiagnosed or developing pathologies of the digestive system. In addition to unreasonable vomiting after each feeding, this may be indicated by a weak set or lack of weight gain, and dehydration can become a dangerous consequence.
3. The cause of vomiting without the usual companions (temperature and diarrhea) may be a foreign body stuck in the larynx or esophagus. The repeated appearance of spasms indicates the failure of the child's body to cope with the problem on its own. Here you cannot do without the help of a surgeon.
4. In children who have already reached the age of two, metabolic pathology may be the cause. The so-called acetone vomiting occurs at the same time as bad breath or from the whole body and lethargy. This is a consequence of the acetone crisis, in which a violation of the usual metabolism leads to a sharp increase in the level of uric acid in the body. Lack of medical intervention or failure to comply with his prescriptions leads to severe intoxication and general dehydration.
5. It is possible that vomiting in a child without fever and diarrhea is psychogenic. What to do in this case, the child psychologist will tell you. It is often difficult for parents to determine the true cause of the neurotic gag reflex. It can be equally caused by unwillingness to eat certain food, developing phobia, mental disorders or difficult family relationships, bullying in the children's team.
6. Kinetosis is a common cause. Vomiting occurs as a result of motion sickness and is explained by the individual characteristics of the vestibular apparatus. The reason may be a trip in any form of transport, riding on attractions. In this case, you need to pay attention to the cause and try to avoid it. Kinetosis can accompany a person throughout his life.

Symptomatic treatment in such cases rarely leads to success, since parents try to stop the symptoms with random drugs:

• analgesics;
• drugs for headache;
• anti-nausea agents.

It must be remembered that the main manifestation and accompanying causes will be eliminated only after the main pathogen is eliminated. It is impossible to determine which particular reason is acting in a particular case without professional knowledge and diagnostics. Medicines may aggravate and not alleviate the general condition.

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What can be done before the doctor comes

Remove the remnants of vomit, wash with cool water and put in bed (certainly on one side) to prevent aspiration of vomit. Carefully ask (if age permits) what was eaten without the knowledge of the parents, analyze independently what the baby was fed with.

Help with a new attack by holding your head and substituting a basin. Gently give warm water to drink (no more than a spoon at a time, so as not to provoke new cramps), but persistently and constantly to avoid dehydration.

An indispensable condition is to constantly monitor the child's condition, especially if the development of negative symptoms began at night. It is necessary to watch for additional manifestations. If there are convulsions, fainting, rashes, lethargy, refusal of water - call an ambulance.

If there is no improvement the next day, be sure to call a doctor, he will advise which specialist you need to contact if the solution to the problem is not within his competence. Do not try to force feed if you have no appetite.

No medication should be given without a doctor's recommendation. If a child under one year old has vomiting without fever and diarrhea, you should not argue about what to do and look for advice on the Internet. There is no need to wait for the development of negative dynamics; it is better to seek medical help immediately.

Summarize

1. There are several causes of vomiting without accompanying symptoms (fever and indigestion). Parental tactics depend on the main reason.
2. With psychogenic vomiting, an appeal to a psychologist is required.
3. With trauma, foreign body or congenital abnormalities - to a surgeon and endocrinologist.
4. With an unexplained etiology and accompanying warning signs, as well as if it is an infant, call an ambulance.
5. You can not give a child medicine on their own or the advice of incompetent people. Admission is justified only if the medicine is prescribed by a doctor after a diagnosis.