Problem
A 10-year-old boy was brought into the emergency department by his mother because she was worried about his ongoing nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal cramping. Previous to this episode, the child had been perfectly healthy, and he does not suffer from any chronic illness.
History: During history intake, the mother informs you that his symptoms began approximately 24 hours after they visited a local town fair, 2 days ago. At the fair, the child ate food and drank from the concession stands, and also joined in various activities such as a petting zoo where he played with other children.
i. Based on the symptoms alone, list the major types (group) of pathogens (there should be several) that could be associated with these symptoms. Do not narrow down to a pathogenic species at this stage because if you are guessing wrong, then you could be following a route that would exclude the actual agent of disease.
ii. Looking at the history, explain whether you are able to exclude any group of pathogens (i.e. timing, potential route of infection, etc.)?
iii. As a medical professional, name 2 different medical tests that could be used to determine the presence of pathogens (hint: What might you collect to test for the possibility of an infectious agent during the patients visit).
iv. Name 2 laboratory tests (you have already completed several in lab) that you could run on the sample you collected, to confirm the presence of pathogens that could be the cause of the disease.