Rickets

Rickets is a deficiency disease of infancy and childhood characterized by a disturbance of the normal process of ossification of bones with resultant deformity. Rickets is a systemic disease and most commonly occurs during the first year of life.

The predisposing factors of the development of rickets are rapid growth, prematurity and increased susceptibility to the disease. The disease may be caused by the deficiency of vitamin D and calcium in the diet, by the deficiency of sunlight and fresh air. Common early symptoms may include profuse sweating, particularly during sleep, vomiting and diarrhea. The children’s appetite is diminished and they do not gain in weight. Softening of the bones of the skull in the first few months of life may be an early sign. It is the change of the structure of the ends of the long bones in the region of epiphysis that is a common finding. The diagnosis is easily made by X-ray examination of the ends of the long bones. The head of the rachitic child is large in its upper part, the teeth appear late and fall out or decay early, the face is small. The child’s development is inhibited.

Commonly the disease does not terminate in recovery. Complications associated with rickets include bronchitis, pneumonia, gastroenteric disturbances, muscular weakness, enlargement of the liver and spleen and anemia.

The prevention of rickets should be thought of before the baby is born The future baby must get vitamin D, sunlight and a sufficient amount of mineral salts through his mother’s body. Consequently, prospective mothers have to spend more time outdoors, eat more raw vegetables, fruits, berries. Breast milk, juices, fresh air, sunlight, suitable clothing and physical activity – all these antirachitic factors may prevent rickets in children. But if the disease does not develop, the doctor prescribes ultraviolet light, vitamin D or cod-liver oil.

It is the Russian scientists who have obtained good results in curing infantile rickets by means of the direct action of the sun’s rays.

The physicians exposed infants to their action from half an hour to several hours depending on the intensity of the sun and the sensitiveness of the skin and noticed marked improvement of the symptoms of the disease and the patient’s general condition

Active words to remember:

Rickets; during; susceptibility; sweating; vomiting; to diminish; to gain in weight; enlargement; to decay; sufficient; consequently; raw; suitable; cold liver oil.

EXERCISES

I. Translate the sentences into Russian. Point out emphatic construction It is (was) …that (who).

1.It is the infection of the lungs that is the most serious complication after influenza. 2. Therapeutic failures do occur in the treatment of venous thrombosis. 3. It was the great Russian surgeon Pirogov who applied anaesthetization by ether for the first time in the world. 4. It is the haemolytic streptococcus that mostly causes acute tonsillitis.5. The onset of rickets does occur almost always insidiously. 6. It is a deficient material diet that causes rare instances of congenital rickets. 7. It is constipation that is frequently seen in the early stages of rickets. 8. It is hemoglobin, an iron-containing protein, that gives the blood its red colour. 9. It is only in extreme cases of rickets that almost every bone in the body is affected. 10. The arterial and venous blood do differ in colour, the former has a scarlet tint, the latter a bluish-red one. 11. It is microbes or germs that are the causative agents of congenital agents of many diseases.

II. Translate into Russian. Pay attention to the verbs in the Passive Voice.

1. The great achievements of scientists in curing infantile rickets by means of the direct action of the sun’s rays are much spoken about. 2. The onset of many infectious diseases is often followed by bad headache and vomiting. 3. The importance of water to living things is so evident that it need not be insisted upon here. 4. The infants obtaining the sunlight treatment were carefully looked upon by the nurses. 5. The works of I. Pavlov, I. Sechenov and other scientists are often referred to by research workers. 6. Rickets is usually followed by pneumonia, bronchitis and anemia. 7. Children are taken care of at our sanatoriums. 8.The final diagnosis of peritonitis was agreed to by all the doctors. 9. The most common early symptom of rickets which is usually complained of is sweating of the head. 10. The problem of the heart and liver transplantations is dealt with in a number of articles. 11. The method of treatment of thrombosis by anticoagulants can be relied upon, as many cases of complete recovery have been reported. 12. This information must not be ignored. 13. It is clear that a child cannot be looked upon as being an adult with a less weight and size. 14. Medical students are advised to read the following journals: Pediatrica, Mother and Child Welfare, Obstetrics and Gynecology. 15. The infant was not given any medication at home. 16. They were offered to study the problem of pediatrics. 17. He was helped by his assistants. 18. I was asked to create favourable conditions for those coming. 19. We were informed that a new method of treatment had been set forth. 20. Some cases of influenza have been reported in a neonatal unit. 21. N. Filatov is regarded as the father of Russian Pediatrics. 22. A severe attack of influenza was followed by pneumonia. 23. The pediatrician’s questions were answered by the parents in detail. 24. The infant was affected by cold. 25. Child mortality and morbidity are combated by both pediatricians and obstetrician.

III. Translate the sentences paying attention to rendering the impersonal construction.

It is expected that … It is thought that … It is known that … It must be stressed that … It cannot be denied that … It should be remembered that … It was considered possible … It must be born in mind … It must be added that … It must be remembered.

1. It must be stressed that the family history is taken with great detail. 2. It should be remembered that the information of the development of the baby in the first year of life is of importance. 3. It must be added that careful questioning will show whether diarrhea and cough were provoked by some definite cause. 4. It must be born in mind that the present age of parents, the state of their health, the health of the relatives are of significance for making the family history. 5. It is thought that the course of therapy must be repeated as needed. 6. Let it be stressed that the journals Pediatrica, Mother and Child Welfare play an important part in training medical staff in the spirit of high principles necessary for everyday practical work.

IV. Group the words with the same root.

During, common, to inhibit, recovery, to appear, to enlarge, prevention, insufficient, large, appearance, uncommonly, duration, resultant, disappearance, to prevent, to recover, commonly, inhibition, result from, enlargement, sufficiently, uncommon, result in, disappear, insufficiently, preventive, sufficient.

V. Choose the appropriate adjectives for the nouns in the right column:

a. direct 1. sweating

b. rapid 2. bone

c. fresh 3. vegetables

d. profuse 4. light

e. long 5. action

f. sufficient 6. amount

g. raw 7. air

h. ultraviolet 8. growth

i. common 9. finding

VI. Group the synonyms:

1. disease; to occur; commonly; rapid; finding; to have to; to terminate; to associate with; prevention; amount.

2.quick; to end; prophylaxis; disturbance; must; usually; to take place; sign; to connect with; quantity.

VII. Group the antonyms:

A) normal; commonly; rapid; to increase; susceptibility; early; to include; long; upper; to appear; sufficient; more.

B) To diminish; slow; late; abnormal; insufficient; less; unusually; to disappear; resistance; to exclude; lower; short.

VIII. Give English equivalents of the following word-combinations:

Желудочно-кишечные расстройства; увеличение печени; достаточное количество; проводить больше времени на свежем воздухе; характеризоваться чем-либо; в настоящее время; нарушение нормального процесса окостенения; встречаться наиболее часто; в течение первых лет жизни; получать хорошие результаты; при лечении рахита; мышечная слабость; недостаток витамина Д; подвергать действию; чувствительность кожи; заметное улучшение; общее состояние больного.

IX. Translate the following sentences into English:

1.Рахит чаще всего встречается у детей именно в первые годы жизни. 2.Причины заболевания рахитом очень разнообразны Недостаток витамина Д и кальция в питании, а также солнечного света и свежего воздуха самые главные из них. 3. При появлении потливости, рвоты, поноса, при отсутствии аппетита ребенка нужно немедленно показать врачу. 4. Обычное явление при рахите – изменение структуры концов длинных костей в эпифизе. 5. После рахита могут быть серьезные и опасные осложнения – воспаление легких, бронхит, желудочно-кишечные расстройства, увеличение печени, селезенки, мышечная слабость, анемия. 6. Рахит можно предотвратить. Дети должны как можно больше находиться на свежем воздухе и есть как можно больше свежих фруктов и овощей. 7. Врачи прописывают облучение ультрафиолетовыми лучами, витамин Д или рыбий жир именно при рахите.

X. Make up your own situations on the following topics using the given words and expressions:

1. You are a pediatrician. One of your patients was a rachitic baby. Make up a case-report of his illness: (family history, premature, to stay indoors, to be afraid of her child catching cold, physical examination revealed…, symptoms, X-ray examination, to prescribe a course of treatment, improvement in the child’s condition).

2. A mother brought her sick child to the clinic. Having examined the child the doctor diagnosed rickets and prescribe the proper treatment: (complain of, poor appetite, profuse sweating, to change clothes, to examine carefully, to prescribe cod liver oil, to advise).

3.Two mothers are talking in the waiting-room. One of them whose child has been cured for rickets is comforting the other one who has a baby suffering from it: ( not to worry, to obtain good results, to expose to the action of the sun’s rays, to prescribe, one teaspoonful twice a day, raw vegetables, fresh air).