Childbed fever, a bacterial infection of the reproductive organ that can spread into the bloodstream, was extensively studied in the 18th-19th century. Doctors learned to recognize symptoms, but there was no effective treatment until the mid-20th century. Hand washing was advocated by Alexander Gordon, Oliver Wendell Holmes, and Ignaz Semmelweis. Today, childbed fever is a minor problem in developed countries, but it remains a tragic problem in developing countries. Women who have had a miscarriage, abortion, or labor and delivery should report any fever above 100 degrees F immediately to doctors.
Childbed fever is a fairly rare disease that occurs at the end of a pregnancy through childbirth, abortion or abortion. Also called puerperal sepsis, this condition represents a bacterial infection of the reproductive organ, which can spread into the bloodstream. This disease exists today especially when women give birth in unsanitary circumstances or when they receive abortions that are not conducted in a sterile manner. Worse, in such situations antibiotics may not be available, making it certain that the disease will spread unchecked. At one point the impact of childbed fever was felt much more extensively.
17th-century Britain provides the earliest documented cases of childbed fever, but it is probable that cases existed long before documentation. The issue was studied extensively in several countries in the 18th-19th century as women faced extraordinary risks to have a baby. 17-18% of them may die in labor and the number was higher for those who miscarried. Doctors learned to recognize the symptoms, which usually started with a fever above 19 degrees F (10 degrees C) within the first 20 days after delivery, but didn’t understand the cause, and until the mid-20th century c ‘was no effective treatment.
Some of the most important works done in these two centuries on childbirth fever are attributed to Alexander Gordon, Oliver Wendell Holmes and Ignaz Semmelweis. All three men advocated hand washing to prevent the spread of the disease. In that climate, none of these men was listened to with much respect, and it is very probable that many doctors were carriers of disease, not just childbirth fever, but many other diseases.
In the early 20th century, after the work of Louis Pasteur and others, it became apparent that doctors could transmit disease from one patient to another. Medical teaching has sided with this view, suggesting various hand cleaning solutions to prevent infections. Even with such measures, cases of childbed fever still occurred, albeit less frequently, and could not be treated because there were no antibiotics. With the development of antibiotics, a cure was possible.
In developed countries today, the problem of childbed fever is a minor problem. It can still occur, but usually responds to treatment. It is more likely to be a problem after illegally obtained abortions than after labour. In these circumstances, the procedures may be unhygienic and the person is unlikely to seek further medical treatment for symptoms such as fever. There are areas in developing countries where childbed fever remains a tragic problem and where it is difficult to treat.
Because this illness can still occur, women who have had a miscarriage, miscarriage, or labor and delivery should report any fever above 100 degrees F immediately to doctors if it occurs in the first 10 days after the end of the pregnancy. pregnancy. Suspected cases of this condition are best treated individually. Different antibiotics could be used depending on the bacteria present. In some cases, a woman with a known infection is treated prophylactically, before birth, to prevent infection of the uterus or bloodstream.
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