Cheek bite fever
Postpartum fever or puerperal fever , also known as childbed fever , is one of the most feared illnesses in women who are in childbirth. The majority of women who contracted childbed fever died. Today, however, the infectious disease has lost its greatest danger. Due to the hygiene regulations and the treatment options, illnesses or deaths are extremely rare.
What is childbed fever?
The term infectious diseases also includes the dreaded childbed fever, which is also known as postpartum fever or puerperal fever. Childbed fever occurs after the birth of a viable child, or the infection can also occur after a stillbirth. Childbed fever occurs only in very rare cases today and can already be treated.
In the actual sense, the physician understands the term childbed fever to mean blood poisoning . The disease was discovered by Ignaz Semmelweiß, an Austrian doctor from Vienna. It was also Ignaz Semmelweiß who brought various preventive methods into being and was thus significantly involved in the prevention of childbed fever. For this reason, the classic childbed fever has already lost its horror – from a long time ago.
causes
The main cause of childbed fever lies in the microbial pathogens. The bacteria are caused by poor hygienic conditions. This means that insufficient disinfection of the devices or hands can be the classic trigger for childbed fever. Due to the fact that the woman’s birth canal is considered an open wound after childbirth, it is quite possible for bacteria to be introduced.The incomplete afterbirth can also trigger childbed fever. The placenta does not detach completely and thus remains partially in the woman. The industry is dying and secreting a “corpse poison”, so to speak. This leads to sepsis or poisoning, which triggers childbed fever. The microorganisms enter the woman’s bloodstream through the “corpse poison”, which releases the remaining, already dead placenta. In addition, decomposition substances are formed, which damage the cells and at the same time are toxic for the body.
symptoms and course
Typical symptoms of childbed fever:
Classic symptoms are high fever or increased body temperature. The woman complains of severe abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting. A circulatory shock is also possible. Many patients also reported inner restlessness and heart palpitations. A drop in blood pressure or permanent [[[low blood pressure]] is also one of the main symptoms of childbed fever. If left untreated, the disease will eventually lead to blood poisoning. An untreated childbed fever leads to the death of the patient.
Diagnose
Nowadays, thanks to new medical methods and procedures, the diagnosis of childbed fever is no longer a problem. The doctor diagnoses childbed fever relatively early, so that no damage to health is to be expected. Even if childbed fever was a great scare for doctors in the past, today it has become an easily treatable disease that only occurs rarely. The doctor makes the diagnosis based on the symptoms or through blood tests .
complications
As a rule, childbed fever can be treated relatively well. Particular complications only arise if the treatment is not initiated at all or only too late. Those affected suffer from a high fever and also from vomiting or nausea. There is also often pain in the stomach or abdomen and general inner restlessness. Those affected often feel exhausted and tired. Palpitations or breathing difficulties can also occur as a result of childbed fever and are often associated with a significant drop in blood pressure.
It can also cause dizziness or loss of consciousness. If childbed fever is not treated, it usually leads to blood poisoning, which ends fatally for the person concerned. As a rule, childbed fever can be treated well so that those affected do not die and can regenerate again. Life expectancy is not negatively affected by successful treatment. As a rule, the fever can also be avoided relatively easily by treating the birth wound hygienically.
treatment and therapy
At the beginning of the therapy for childbed fever, the patients receive antibiotic medication. Thus, the inflammation is alleviated and the pathogens, which divide, are fought. This means that there is no spread of the pathogens. The doctor not only treats the cause, but can also alleviate the symptoms. The doctor mainly prescribes medication against the nausea and vomiting that occurs and also prescribes antipyretic tablets.
Another factor is that the woman – in childbirth – observes herself well. Examinations at the gynecologist should not be “forgotten” or “postponed”. Other treatment options are tablets, which ensure that the uterus shrinks and thus healing is improved. However, there are different approaches to treating childbed fever. So there are local as well as general measures that the doctors take to properly treat and cure childbed fever.
Local applications are used when the doctor finds that various puerpural ulcers have formed directly in the uterus. These ulcers are surgically opened and treated with caustic solutions. The patient also receives medication that stimulates the circulatory system. Treatment with infusions is also popular. The infusions are either herbal or purely synthetic and help the patient to feel well or to improve their general condition.
However, the patient cannot breastfeed her newborn during childbed fever. The fact is, however, that – even today – if the treatment is missing or too late, the woman can very well die of childbed fever. For this reason, it is important that medical help is sought immediately at the first sign. Furthermore, medical examinations and check-ups after the birth should be carried out so that the childbed fever – if the worst comes to the worst – is recognized and treated in good time.
prevention
Even if today’s hygiene standards are mature, it is not possible for all contamination to be kept away from the birth canal (the wound). It is therefore still possible that childbed fever can occur. Even when doctors use sterile instruments and disposable gloves, there is a risk of infection . This approach to hygiene does not only apply to childbirth in the hospital; regulations of this kind are also observed in the case of home births.In principle, it is not possible that childbed fever can be prevented by choosing whether the woman gives birth in the hospital or at home. There is no direct prevention; the patient must trust the treating physicians.
Hello and welcome to my Health Guide & Encyclopedia! My name is Dorothy Farrar, and I'm the founder and main author of this platform.
My passion for health and wellness started at a young age when I became interested in the connection between the food we eat and the way we feel. This fascination led me to study nutrition and dietetics in college, where I learned about the importance of a balanced diet and the impact of various nutrients on the body.