Anthrax in children

Anthrax is an acute infectious disease of animals and humans with severe intoxication, damage to the skin and lymphatic system.

ICD-10 code

• A22.0 Skin form of anthrax (carbuncle, pustule).
• A22.1 Pulmonary form of anthrax (respiratory form, rag disease, sorter sorter disease).
• A.22.2 Gastrointestinal form of anthrax.
• A22.7 Seizureleptic septicemia.
• A22.8 Other forms of anthrax (anthrax meningitis).
• A22.9 Anthrax, unspecified.

Epidemiology of anthrax

The main source of infection is sick animals - cattle, sheep, goats, horses, camels, donkeys, pigs. They are contagious throughout the period of the disease, isolating the pathogen into the external environment with urine, feces, bloody excreta of the lungs, saliva. After their death, all organs and tissues, including skins, wool, bones, etc., are contagious.

Man, unlike animals, is not contagious to others.

Infection of a person is possible by contact, alimentary, aerogenic and transmissible pathway through infected insects - flies, flies and mosquitoes.

Causes of anthrax

The causative agent of anthrax is an anthrax bacillus (Bacillus anthracis) - a large immobile stick surrounded by a transparent capsule. There are vegetative and spore forms. Vegetative forms develop in a living organism or in young laboratory cultures.

Spores of anthrax bacteria in soil and water persist for dozens of years, in animal wool - several months, in animal skins - for years. In a living organism and a corpse, sporulation does not occur.

The virulence of anthrax bacteria is associated with the ability to form a capsule and produce exotoxin.

Causes and pathogenesis of anthrax

Symptoms of anthrax

The incubation period is often 2-3 days, rarely it can last up to 6-8 days or decrease to several hours.

Isolate localized and generalized forms of anthrax. The most common is the localized (cutaneous) form of the disease.

Cutaneous form. At the entrance gate of the pathogen appears reddish stain, quickly turning into a papule of copper-red color, accompanied by itching. A few hours later, the vesicle is formed in the place of the papule, its contents are serous at first, then it becomes dark, bloody. Often patients due to severe itching comb the pustule, less often it bursts itself, a sore is formed. From the surface of the sore there is abundant serous-hemorrhagic exudation, "daughter" vesicles are formed, which, when opened, cause the eccentric growth of the ulcer.

Symptoms of anthrax

Diagnosis of anthrax

Laboratory diagnostics provides, first of all, isolation of the pathogen. For microscopic examination, take the contents of pustules, pus, carbuncle material, blood, urine, sputum, feces, vomit, on autopsy - pieces of organs or whole organs. Microscopy can be combined with luminescent-serological analysis. To increase the probability of isolating crops and facilitating their identification, pathological material is seeded with nutrient media and infects experimental animals.

Anthrax Treatment

The main means of influencing an agent of anthrax is antibiotics in combination with immunoglobulin antituberculosis.

Of the antibiotics penicillin, cephrine, cephalosporin, azithromycin, levomycitin, gentamicin in age doses are used.

Diagnosis and treatment of anthrax

Anthrax Prevention

Preventive measures are directed to prevent contact with sick animals, infected products and raw materials of animal origin.

Active immunization is carried out according to epidemiological indications to people aged from 14 to 60 years. A live dry vaccine against anthrax is administered, which is injected or cutaneous by 2 drops once, or subcutaneously by 0.5 ml (vaccine for cutaneous use, diluted 100 times) twice with an interval of 20-30 days and followed by revaccination after 12 months.

[1], [2], [3], [4], [5], [6], [7]