How is salmonellosis treated?
Salmonellosis is mostly treated by rehydration using intravenous fluids. Antibiotics are administered in case of severe infection.
Normally, Salmonella infections last for just a week. Rigorous treatment is often not required to control the illness. Diarrhea, in these patients, may be completely cured although it will take a while before normalcy is regained in the bowels. However, medical help must be sought if the patient suffers from severe dehydration or if the infection reaches the blood stream and spreads to other body parts.
A small group of Salmonella-infected people will go on to develop Reiter's syndrome, which is characterized, by joint pains, painful urination and eye irritation. This may last for several months or even years leading to chronic arthritis, a condition that does not respond to treatment. Arthritis may develop, irrespective of the person being treated with antibiotics.
- Self-treatment in persons with severe diarrhea consists of rehydration with intravenous fluids containing electrolytes. Electrolyte solutions are sold in all pharmacies without a prescription.
- Infected Infants may be treated with electrolytes while continuing to be breast-fed.
- Antibiotics are administered only if the infection spreads from the intestine to other body parts. Antibiotics, such as ampicillin, gentamicin, ciprofloxacin or trimethoprim/ sulfamethoxazole are employed in the treatment. It needs to be ruefully accounted those certain mutants of Salmonella bacteria are resistant to antibiotics.
- Diet restrictions would include avoiding milk products, bananas, rice, apples and toast.
