Prognosis
The infection with a gastrointestinal virus has a very good prognosis. Although the infection starts quickly and severely, the symptoms subside significantly after 2 days. Especially vomiting and diarrhea should disappear after 2 days, but there may be some fatigue and slight nausea.
Even small children have a very good prognosis as long as they have a sufficient fluid intake. In older patients an infection with a gastrointestinal virus is not dramatic, but should be monitored more closely as the loss of volume causes the body to dry out more quickly and in the worst case this can lead to kidney failure. In this case the prognosis is unfortunately very poor. Nevertheless, it should be said that an infection with a gastro-intestinal virus is very harmless as long as one pays attention to sufficient fluid intake and spares the body.
Is the pill safe in case of a gastrointestinal virus?
The pill is normally broken down by the intestinal flora into its effective hormones and then absorbed into the bloodstream via the intestinal mucosa, where it can then exert its effect. If a person taking an oral contraceptive such as the pill suffers from a gastrointestinal virus, caution is advised. The pill can be spat out again by vomiting.
Diarrhoea causes the pill to not travel along the walls of the bowel for long enough and the active ingredient (synthetic hormones) cannot be absorbed in sufficient quantities. Vomiting and diarrhoea within three to four hours after taking the pill prevent adequate protection from conception. The contraceptive is therefore considered to be virtually not taken.
Gastrointestinal virus in pregnancy
There is no direct danger to the baby from the virus, as the viruses only infect the mother’s gastrointestinal tract and do not reach the baby at all. The virus does not enter the bloodstream and therefore never has contact with the baby. The only problem is the consequences of the symptoms, which can be harmful to both the mother and the baby.Due to the constant diarrhea and vomiting, the body loses a lot of fluids and minerals.
This leads to a lack of water (dehydration), which weakens the mother’s circulation and organ functions. In addition, pregnant women suffer from severe loss of appetite or lose the food they have taken in through vomiting. The mother thus suffers from a lack of energy, since in the acute phase hardly any nutrients are absorbed into the blood.
However, this usually has no consequences for the baby because the symptoms of the gastrointestinal virus subside after a few days. The severe diarrhea and abdominal cramps can promote the onset of labor, especially in the last trimester of pregnancy, which is why pregnant women with Norovirus should definitely consult a doctor. Breastfeeding in itself does not present any problems for the baby, because the pathogens (viruses) are not transmitted to the baby via the milk.
It is only important to ensure very good hygiene before and during breastfeeding, as the baby must not come into contact with the mother’s stool or vomit. Therefore, before breastfeeding, the hands and possibly also the breast should be thoroughly cleaned with warm water and soap. Breast milk, on the other hand, can even protect the infant from contracting the gastrointestinal virus.
During the course of infection with the gastrointestinal virus, the mother produces antibodies that try to prevent the pathogen from multiplying or even kill it. These antibodies are passed on to the baby through breast milk and influence the baby’s intestinal flora in such a way that the pathogen is less able to multiply in the intestine. It has been proven that breastfed children have fewer gastrointestinal infections than children who are not breastfed.
