Rickets in children: photos, signs, symptoms and treatment

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-01-01 17:06

As a rule, there are very few perfectly he althy children. One of the most frequently diagnosed diseases in children under one year old is rickets. What is rickets? Why is it dangerous and why does it appear? How to treat it and what prophylaxis should be carried out in order to avoid this disease? Everything is detailed in this article.

What is this disease?

When the word "rickets" everyone imagines a child with a bulging tummy, thin and weakened arms and legs. But the clinical picture may be much broader.

Rickets is not a disease of any particular organ, it is a complex metabolic disorder associated with a lack of nutrients.

You can talk about rickets when you detect a lack of vitamin D, which is the basis of phosphorus-calcium metabolism. It is this vitamin that is responsible for the correct formation of the bone and muscle systems of the child.

At what age is the disease diagnosed?

Diagnosing rickets in a one-month-old baby is difficult. The first signs of the disease begin to appear at the age of 1-2 months, andthe picture appears only by 3-6 months.

Usually children under 2 years of age are affected. The development of rickets in older children is extremely rare. If the child has not been diagnosed with the disease before this time, then you can not worry.

Children of all countries are affected by rickets. The disease is especially common in people who live in the northern regions. The lack of sunlight and the minimum amount of he althy fresh vegetables, fruits and herbs are companions of rickets.

Why is rickets dangerous?

Currently, mass prevention of the disease is being carried out, but it is still relevant. Rickets is not dangerous for life, but it carries a number of unpleasant moments, including:

• developmental disorder;
• compromised immunity;
• hypoxia.

The disease itself is not so dangerous as its consequences. For example, girls may develop a flat rachitic pelvis, which in the future will complicate the course of childbirth or even become an obstacle to natural delivery.

Children with advanced rickets develop noticeably slower both physically and mentally, which prevents many kids from fully attending educational and developmental institutions.

Rickets distorts the structure of bones. The skull and spine are noticeably affected.

Causes of rickets

The disease appears for many reasons, including not only internal, but also external.

Children develop rickets due to pregnant lifestylewomen. If she does not get enough vitamins, has bad habits, does not appear much in the air and the sun - all this can cause a disease in the unborn baby.

During pregnancy, it is recommended to focus on calcium-rich foods as much as possible.

Premature birth can provoke rickets in children, as babies get the maximum calcium in the last month of gestation.

The birth of a child in the cold season, when there is little natural ultraviolet radiation, is also the cause of the disease.

Distort the metabolism in the body can be an early transfer of the baby to the mixture, insufficient or excessive food intake. Do not stuff your baby with food, do not feed him on time. You need to put the baby to the breast on his demand, and do not take it away until he is full.

Rickets can be caused by a congenital metabolic disorder. Thyroid disease can provoke the development of rickets.

Rickets in children and sunlight

Human skin is able to synthesize vitamin D, which, as we have said, is responsible for the formation of bones and muscles. This vitamin is produced in large quantities in the body when walking in the sun. No wonder doctors recommend taking air and sunbaths.

Even if a mother often walks with her child, lets the sun get on his skin, rickets can still appear. The fact is that the smoke, dustiness and dense buildings of large cities make it difficult to fully penetratesunbeams on the ground.

Skin color is an important factor in the ability to synthesize vitamin D. The darker the epidermis, the lower the synthesis.

What foods have vitamin D?

The sun is good, but not everyone can fully access it: the northern region, bad ecology, and so on. In addition to sunlight, vitamin D can be obtained from food, and its deficiency or absence can cause rickets in children.

Cholecalciferol is an animal-derived vitamin D and is more productive than ergocalciferol, a plant-derived vitamin.

The maximum amount of cholecalciferol is found in the following foods:

• egg yolk;
• poultry and fish liver;
• cod fat;
• milk;
• butter.

Of course, all these products should not be given to babies, but they can be eaten by a nursing mother, and vitamins will enter the baby's body through milk.

Disease of the kidneys and liver is the cause of rickets, as vitamin D is converted through them. The absorption of the vitamin occurs through the small intestine. If something is wrong in at least one organ, there are malfunctions, then rickets may develop.

It is not recommended to consume large amounts of grains in food, as they contain phenobarbital, phytates and glucocorticosteroids, which block vitamin D receptors. With frequent consumption of grains, the vitamin will simply be excreted from the body with feces.

How to identify a lack of vitamin D?

Photos of rickets in children (its symptoms) can be seen in this article. But to determine the early signs of a lack of vitamin D is quite realistic. Having learned that the baby lacks this substance, you can take measures to restore it as soon as possible.

The following symptoms indicate a lack of vitamin D:

1. The baby becomes lethargic, or, conversely, naughty for no reason.
2. Irritability and itching appear. At the same time, the child turns his head in different directions to eliminate discomfort, which contributes to abrasion of the hair on the back of the head.
3. The baby sweats a lot. The smell of sweat is sour. Due to such sweating, irritation often appears on the child's body - prickly heat.
4. The baby may begin to flinch due to sharp, previously familiar sounds.

All these symptoms can appear due to dry air, heat and natural activity of the baby. But they can also be the first signs of rickets. You should not wait for improvements, you need to show the baby to the pediatrician.

If you do not pay attention to the first signs, then rickets can worsen, and by 8 months the following symptoms will appear:

1. The bones on the wrists are compacted, and the lower ribs begin to grow rapidly.
2. The baby's tummy and forehead will become more prominent.
3. Head will start to grow disproportionately and sweat a lot.
4. Because of weakened muscles, the baby will not be able not only to crawl, but also to sit on his own, which is not normal for 8 months.
5. The fontanel will stopshrink and begin to expand.
6. Baby often shudders in his sleep.
7. The baby's chin trembles while crying.
8. Shortness of breath, anxiety.
9. Breathing becomes uneven, knocked down - due to deformation of the chest and diaphragm with abundant growth of the lower ribs.
10. Phalanges of the fingers increase.

If at the same time you do not pay attention to the he alth and condition of the baby, then rickets will progress further. When the baby still walks, a progressive curvature of the lower extremities will begin, it can be noted:

1. Slow bone growth - body grows but legs don't.
2. The legs will begin to bend - an arc or "X".
3. The pelvis may become flat.
4. The bones of the lower limbs will become wider.

Children with rickets begin to walk noticeably later than their peers. This is due to the curvature and thinning of the bones, which are difficult to support body weight. The muscles of sick children are sluggish and weak. For this reason, the baby will begin to move independently later.

Symptoms of rickets in children are also noticeable when walking. The gait is unsteady, knocked down, the steps are narrow, and the legs can beat against each other. The foot is also deformed, when walking it is noticeable that the baby is clubfoot. After walking, the child may complain of severe fatigue and pain in the legs. Often these children ask to be held after a short walk.

There are symptoms of rickets in children when drawing, modeling and other activities that involve fine motor skills of the fingers. The baby may not be able to holdbrush, pencil, he will not be able to roll a ball of plasticine - all this is due to deformation of bones and joints.

Low levels of calcium can become not only in the bone tissue, but also in the blood. In such a situation, rickets in children can be manifested by seizures. Doctors call this condition spasmophilia, and it appears most often in the spring season.

Recovery stage

A child begins to recover independently in the third year of life. The spine is aligned, bones, joints, expanded during the disease, are restored, the legs become even.

Pains in the legs disappear after walking and physical exertion, fine motor skills are restored.

If at 4-5 years old the baby still has a curvature of the legs, then this is called prolonged rickets. At the same time, the bones will still grow slowly, the delay in the development of the motor apparatus will continue.

A reasonable question arises: if low levels of vitamin D are to blame for the development of the disease, then why not prescribe it to all babies? This will not solve the problem, and rickets will continue to be relevant. The fact is that with our lifestyle, when it is not possible to go for frequent walks with a child under the sun, ultraviolet light cannot provide the required amount of this vitamin. Even when walking, dustiness and dense buildings interfere. Living in the private sector, you also can’t “fry” for a long time in the sunlight - this is contraindicated not only for babies, but also for adults.

The faster the child grows, the greater his needin vitamin D. Its deficiency can also be caused by untimely introduction of complementary foods - mashed potatoes, juices, cottage cheese. There is a lot of vitamin D in fish, but it should not be given to a child up to a year. Fish oil is back on the market, but it does not work well in preventing or treating rickets in children.

What will help get rid of the disease and prevent its development?

Why doesn't the pediatrician prescribe vitamin D?

Many doctors, seeing signs of rickets in a child (the photo can be seen in the article, they are really pronounced), stubbornly do not want to prescribe vitamin D, which is sold in a pharmacy. Usually motivate refusal to accept the following:

• vitamin is synthesized in the body from provitamin, you just need to walk more in the sun;
• baby fed with formula fortified with vitamin D;
• mother breastfeeds the baby, and she takes a vitamin complex;
• it is better to introduce cottage cheese, which is rich in calcium, and also give a few drops of fish oil.

But a vitamin derived from formula, breast milk, cottage cheese and fish oil is not able to compensate for its deficiency in the body. Even a prophylactic dose of vitamin D (1-2 drops per day) will not cure rickets that is already developing.

After being born, the baby has a small supply of vitamin, which is transmitted from the mother. But by the month of life, its deficiency arises, which needs to be replenished.

Prevention of rickets in children

There are many proponents of vitamin D supplementation for prevention when children a day or everyday give a drop of the drug. But this method of prevention is wrong, it will not work.

The course dosage of vitamin D for the prevention of childhood rickets is 200,000-400,000 IU. That is, the calculation must be carried out not by drops, but by the amount of vitamin D contained in the purchased preparation, which is calculated in IU (thousands of international units).

Vitamin D_{2 accumulates in the liver, so it is recommended to give it to children from 1-1.5 months. Course - 20-25 days at 8000-12000 IU per day.}

Two months after the completion of the course, when the baby no longer receives an additional vitamin, his condition is assessed and the issue of continuing the prevention or treatment of rickets in children is decided.

If there are no signs of rickets, then the prophylactic course is repeated in the second half of life.

Vitamin D_{3 is an aqueous, not oily solution that does not accumulate in the liver, but is quickly excreted from the body. It needs to be given more often. One drop of the solution contains 500 IU of the vitamin, but only the doctor will prescribe the dosage, based on the age, weight of the child, as well as on his nutrition and development.}

It is good for a child to be in the sun. The safest and most useful it is before 11 am and after 5 pm. But at the same time, the baby's head should be covered by a Panama hat, and the face and hands can be fully exposed to the sun's rays.

After six months, the child needs to be fed cottage cheese, juices, purees (vegetable, meat, poultry liver, fish), hake fish, cod and pike perch are especially useful. Also give butter, egg yolk(boiled).

If the baby eats cereal more than once a day, then he is more in need of rickets prevention.

Treatment of rickets

How to treat rickets in a child when the disease still began to develop? This is a long process that will take several months, not a couple of weeks, as with SARS.

In the treatment, general medical and orthopedic measures are prescribed. Recommended spa treatment, massage, baths and sun exposure.

During the treatment of rickets, not only vitamin D is prescribed, but also preparations containing a large amount of calcium. The method of taking vitamins and the dosage is prescribed by the attending pediatrician.

In addition to drugs, massage of the legs, back, buttocks is prescribed. One session should take 20-25 minutes, and the course will last from 4 to 5 weeks - massage daily. Many parents are skeptical about this event. But massage for rickets is mandatory, it tones the muscles, normalizes blood circulation. The specialist will twist and turn the legs, rub the back, which helps to correct the curvature.

A child with rickets needs peace and lack of great physical exertion. In the stage of active development of the disease, when there is a risk of fractures, splints and orthoses are used. The Thomas apparatus is also prescribed, which relieves stress from the legs and hips.

Children are prescribed preventive shoes to be worn even at home. Sandals can only be canceled after recovery.

In case of significant curvature of the hips and lower legs, an operation is performed toimpact on the bone growth zone. With the help of the operation, it is possible to correct the curvature and prevent the development of new ones.

Treatment time and results depend on when the treatment started. The sooner you take measures to eliminate the disease, the faster you can get rid of it, and the consequences will also be minimal.