MONTEGO BAY, St James – Faced with a continued increase in the number of adults and children with gastroenteritis in western Jamaica, the Western Regional Health Authority (WRHA) has re-issued its advisory on the treatment of the virus.

Cases of gastroenteritis are now widespread in the parishes of Hanover and St James, while Trelawny is under close watch as a number of cases have shown up there over the last couple of days.

Figures released by the WRHA show that up to Tuesday night, St James had seen 607 cases of gastroenteritis of which 432 are children under five years old. And at 4:30 pm on Wednesday, 25 new cases had been added to the parish’s total. Some of the cases seen in St James are from Hanover where 119 cases were reported between January 4 and 31. Of that number, 62 are children under five years old.

Gastroenteritis is an inflammation of the stomach and intestines that results in vomiting and frequent watery stools (diarrhoea), with mostly children being affected in colder months.

It is very important, the WRHA said, to treat vomiting and diarrhoea properly in order to prevent dehydration that can quickly become acute, especially in small children. The Authority has advised that persistent vomiting and diarrhoea can be fatal if not arrested early and added that in managing gastroenteritis, parents and other caregivers need to focus on replacing fluid losses – that is, re-hydrating the child.

It is also very important, the WRHA warned, that children suffering from gastro not be given any medicine or home remedies to stop the diarrhoea or the vomiting because this will only prevent the germs from passing out of the child’s system and worsen the condition.

Children should instead be given fluids after each episode of vomiting or loose stool. The best fluids include breast milk, oral re-hydration solution (commercially prepared and available at pharmacies, or made up from oral re-hydration salt), plain water, coconut water and diluted fruit juice. The child is to be fed using a cup or a spoon.

No bottle feed is to be administered and breast-feeding infants need to continue this method of feeding.

In a case where the child is not accepting the fluids well, he or she should immediately be taken for medical assessment.

No food, only fluids, should be given in the initial four hours of re-hydration. After that period, the child should be given all types of food, including milk, every three to four hours.