They affect children more often and can cause small epidemics in kindergartens and schools. Here’s how to deal with them.
Adenoviruses most frequently affect infants and young children, causing multiple cases of respiratory infections and diarrhea in kindergartens and schools.
About fifty types are known that are infectious to humans. In addition to the respiratory tract and intestines can infect the eyes and urinary tract.
Adenovirus infections are generally most frequent towards the end of winter, spring and early summer. However, in some cases they also occur at other times of the year.
It is good to know, however, that conjunctivitis and pharyngo-conjunctival fever tend to affect older boys mostly in summer.
Adenoviruses are highly contagious: they spread from person to person through respiratory secretions, by the fecal-oral route or by indirect transmission by touching contaminated surfaces of furniture and other objects.
Different symptoms depending on the infection
The symptoms of adenovirus infections change depending on the location. If the germ infects for example the upper respiratory tract, the most common site in children, the malaise presents with symptoms very similar to the flu:
In some subjects, a dry cough reminiscent of whooping cough may also occur. When the virus “stops” in the upper respiratory tract, we speak of mild and medium infections that require only symptomatic therapy.
If adenovirus affects the lower respiratory tract it can cause bronchiolitis and viral pneumonia which can be dangerous in infants.
Let’s see what happens when the virus affects the stomach and intestines (in this case we speak of viral gastroenteritis), the eyes, or causes a urinary tract infection.
| Site of infection | Symptoms |
|---|---|
| Stomach and intestines | Diarrhoea, vomiting, headache, fever, abdominal cramps |
| Eyes | Conjunctivitis or keratoconjunctivitis, red eyes, intolerance to light, lacrimation, pain |
| Urinary tract | Frequent urination, burning, pain, blood in the urine |
Finally, pharyngoconjunctival fever, which often causes small outbreaks among school-age children, occurs when the eyes and respiratory tract are infected at the same time.
Treatments and therapies
These forms closely resemble bacterial infections, which are usually treated with antibiotics. Too bad, however, that these drugs are totally ineffective on adenoviruses.
To identify the cause of the infection so that proper treatment can be started, the doctor may, in some cases, prescribe analysis on samples of respiratory and conjunctival secretions, feces, blood or urine.
Apart from cases of vomiting and diarrhea in infants, adenovirus infections usually do not require hospitalization.
In most cases the infection resolves on its own. Rest is essential: the child must be able to sleep peacefully.
And then it is useful to humidify the air with a vaporizer to relieve congestion and, if the baby is less than 6 months old, free the nose with a pump.
In young children, you should not use cold and cough medication without medical supervision. It is possible to administer paracetamol to reduce fever, but it is always better to ask your doctor for the most appropriate doses.
If your child has diarrhea or vomiting, increase fluid intake and ask your doctor for an oral rehydration solution to prevent dehydration.
To relieve conjunctivitis need to make warm compresses. Ointments or eye drops should only be given to the child if prescribed by the doctor.
Prevention (almost) impossible
There is no one way to prevent adenoviral infections in children.
To reduce the risk of transmission, it is essential to insist that children wash their hands often, taking care to keep surfaces and toys clean.
Joycelyn Elders is the author and creator of EmpowerEssence, a health and wellness blog. Elders is a respected public health advocate and pediatrician dedicated to promoting general health and well-being.
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