What are the symptoms of encephalitis in babies?

If a baby has encephalitis, the harm is relatively large. In the early stage of the disease, it gives people the symptoms of a cold, with fever, diarrhea, abdominal pain, muscle pain, etc. As the disease progresses, the child may have mental and behavioral abnormalities, and may have symptoms such as convulsions. At this time, parents must take their children to the hospital for examination in time to avoid greater harm to their health.

What are the symptoms of encephalitis in babies?

Encephalitis is divided into viral encephalitis, bacterial encephalitis and tuberculous encephalitis. The first two are more common. The severity of encephalitis mainly depends on the part of the nervous system infected, and the symptoms can be mild or severe.

For children, encephalitis can be the first sign of the disease, or it can develop into encephalitis if colds or diarrhea are not treated in time. Take viral cold as an example. At the beginning, the virus only exists in the lymphatic system, and then invades the upper respiratory tract, at which time the symptoms of a cold appear. If not treated promptly, the virus will "infiltrate" the blood. As the blood flows, the virus may settle somewhere in the brain, causing encephalitis.

The early symptoms of encephalitis are similar to those of a cold. Patients will experience fever, body aches, poor appetite, etc. As the disease progresses, patients will experience neurological manifestations such as drowsiness, excitement, and convulsions. Children with encephalitis are often misdiagnosed as having a cold in the early stages, missing the best time for treatment. Therefore, if a child shows cold symptoms, abnormal mental and behavioral symptoms, or infants and young children refuse to eat and have headaches, and general cold treatments are ineffective, you should be highly alert to the possibility of encephalitis and take the child to a regular hospital to see a specialist for examination in time.

Four causes of encephalitis in children

1. Causes of bacterial meningitis

Bacterial meningitis is caused by an infection with certain bacteria. This bacteria is carried in the nose or body of healthy people. Under normal circumstances, it does not cause harm to the human body. However, people are easily infected by this bacteria when they have a cold because the inflammation of the nose may allow the bacteria to enter the brain. If not discovered and treated in time, it can easily cause bacterial meningitis. Additionally, bacterial meningitis can be spread through coughing or sneezing.

2. Causes of tuberculous meningitis

Tuberculous meningitis is a non-purulent inflammation of the meninges caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis, accounting for about 6% of systemic tuberculosis. After the Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection spreads through the blood, it implants under the pia mater to form tuberculous nodules. After the nodules rupture, a large number of tuberculosis bacteria enter the subarachnoid space. In recent years, the morbidity and mortality rates of tuberculous meningitis have been on the rise.

3. Causes of Cryptococcal Meningitis

Cryptococcal meningitis can be caused by fungi, the most common of which is Cryptococcus, which is found in pigeons. Healthy people are not susceptible to fungal-related meningitis, but this is not the case for people infected with HIV, a virus that causes the immune deficiency syndrome AIDS. Therefore, people with AIDS are more likely to get cryptococcal meningitis.

4. Causes of viral meningitis

Viral meningitis can be caused by several viruses, including several associated with diarrhea, one of which may be contracted by a bite from a giant vole, for example.