Medical expert of the article
New publications
Mononucleosis: symptoms, treatment
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
All iLive content is medically reviewed or fact checked to ensure as much factual accuracy as possible.
We have strict sourcing guidelines and only link to reputable media sites, academic research institutions and, whenever possible, medically peer reviewed studies. Note that the numbers in parentheses ([1], [2], etc.) are clickable links to these studies.
If you feel that any of our content is inaccurate, out-of-date, or otherwise questionable, please select it and press Ctrl + Enter.
Mononucleosis - an acute viral disease that you can still meet under the name "Filatov's disease", is caused by the Epstein-Barr virus.
Despite the fact that many people have not heard of such a disease, almost every adult person in her childhood has had it. Children from three to fifteen years are most susceptible to mononucleosis. The virus is transmitted by close bodily contact: when kissing, while using one dish by several people. In other cases, infection is unrealistic, since the Epstein-Barr virus is too unstable and dies in an unfavorable environment.
[Mononucleosis: symptoms
The visible symptoms of this disease are fever, enlarged lymph nodes, redness and sore throat. To unobtrusive visual symptoms can be attributed a small increase in the spleen, less often - the liver. Thus, the human body reacts to the appearance in the blood of foreign cells-mononuclears (because of what the disease and got such a name).
The main symptoms of mononucleosis are similar to other infectious diseases: general weakness, malaise, heaviness in the legs, a sharp rise in temperature to 38-39 degrees, inflammation of the lymph nodes in the neck and back, pain and redness in the throat. If you exercise and during the illness do not reduce the physical load, you can trace the increase in the liver or spleen, muscle pain.
Due to the fact that mononucleosis is most often manifested in adolescence, it is also called "student illness" or "kissing disease". In people over forty in the body, protective antibodies are produced that prevent the reproduction of foreign cells.
Mononucleosis is a fairly innocuous disease, but if you do not pay attention to treatment, it can cause serious complications. The fact is that together with mononucleosis, cold diseases usually occur in parallel, which can pass into chronic bronchitis, pneumonia. The virus that causes mononucleosis weakens the immune system, and the body is unable to resist infectious diseases.
How is mononucleosis treated?
Treatment of mononucleosis is not difficult or specific: patients are recommended to comply with bed rest for one or two weeks, in large quantities to consume warm drinks, to refrain from fatty and heavy food in order to unload the liver. If you are concerned about sore throat, then rinse with soda, diluted in warm water, or antiseptic candy. If the temperature remains elevated for more than three to four days, use antipyretic agents based on paracetamol. You can also try to knock down the temperature by alternative methods: warm tea or herbal decoction, bed rest, regular airing of the room. Do not forget that the immune system is weakened and take vitamins, tincture of Echinacea.
If mononucleosis still led to complications: angina, pneumonia, severe inflammation of the lymph nodes, do not delay the visit to the doctor. In the case of bacterial complications, a specialist will write out a course of antibiotics and a special treatment is prescribed based on the tests.