Reflux problem

[ess]

My dd is 6mo and has silent reflux. We are waiting to see a ped as gaviscon isnt working as well but wait is at least 10 weeks! Shes had a constant cough for 4 weeks and doc says shes fine otherwise but she keeps garsping for breath and making strange "ugh" noises. Does anyone have any experience of this?Should i just take her to the hospital and get her seen?She has just screamed for 2 hrs and I am at my wits end with this now.

[ess]

...

[lovinit]

Hi Ess. I just took my DD2 to the doctors who has prescribed her Mylanta and Xantac for her diagnosed reflux . However, she is only 4.5 weeks old and I the noises that she makes are like that of an old man trying to cough up phlegm. I know that it is common for babies under 3mths, but thought they grew out of it after that once they mature. I am wondering myself if anyone has used the medication she has been prescribed and found it to work.

Sorry I cannot help with you though . I really hope you get some help for her as she sounds very uncomfortable.

[ess]

Poor little thing. Did they not try gaviscon first or colief? Doc is putting her on an anti reflux milk called ENFAMIL ar- were collecting it tonight so hope that helps. Its nice to talk to someone who's in the same boat.

[Chandra]

Ess, DS had reflux and Gaviscon didn't work weel for him. He already had consitpation problems and the gaviscon certainly made the things a bit more difficult. Have you starte weaning? at the end it was the introduction of solids and keeping him sitting straight what work for us though it extended meal times by an hour! HTH.

BTW DS made squeaky noises and gasped for breath when having a cold (he was born with Laringomalasia) however, a humidifier in his room and lowering the leg side of his cot made the things a bit easier. But still, I think she should be seen by a doctor, 4 weeks constant cough may be du to other problems

[Chandra]

weel? well even..

[SamN]

ds2 (1yo) still has reflux. Tbh the Gaviscon didn't help one bit, just made him constipated, poor lad. Glad you have appt with paed, ime the GPs don't like to prescribe anything that really works because they don't tend to be licensed for use on infants (in the UK anyway).

It is really really draining so I feel for you. Let me hunt for some sites that might help:

pollywogbaby has a good pdf file all about reflux and the things you can do to help it. Click on the 'Living with infant acid reflux' link underneath the picture of the slightly miserable (but not screaming) baby.

There's lots of information in this message on the infantreflux.org forum. I'm not a member of this forum but I am a member of the breastfeedingreflux group she mentions - if you are breastfeeding to any degree you will find the people on this very very helpful.

There's quite a good summary of the treatments for reflux on webGERD.com .

I've posted on reflux on mumsnet before and I probably put some different links in my earlier messages, so if you search the archives you could find out more.

Ds2 is currently on domperidone and ranitidine (brand name Zantac in many countries). Ranitidine/Zantac works really well on many kids although the dosing is very dependent on weight so you have to watch out for them growing out of the dose. Or some kids just stop responding to ranitidine altogether and have to go on to something that works in a different way.

Ranitidine made a BIG difference to us but his reflux is starting to get a lot worse and in fact I'm changing to a private paediatrician because it appears that the NHS doctor is dosing on the low end of the scale and I think ds2 needs a higher dose.

Having said that, lots of kids grow out of reflux before the age of one so I hope it's the case for your dd, ess, and for yours, lovinit. And in the meantime, hope some of the information in these links is useful for you.

[ess]

Chandra- thanks for the tips, will try a humidifier but doc says its acid inflaming her trachea.

SamN- must be horrible having this for a year-on all of you. This has certainly put a strain on me and dh's relationship. Hes been really supportive in a practical way but think hes getting fed up of me moaning when I have a bad day(which has been quite a lot lately).

Thanks for all the advice, I'll certainly have a look at those sites.

[ess]

SamN- those websites were wonderful. I feel much better knowing i seem to be doing everything I can for DD. People have been on at me to try sleep training and my instincts told me it wasnt right for her(one of the websites mentions not doing this).You're a star.

[SamN]

Glad they made a difference Ess. Unless people have been through it themselves I think it's very hard to understand. Even my dp thinks I'm 'spoiling' ds2 by carrying him around so much. (I do let him cry on the floor sometimes, when I just have to do something without holding him, but I feel awful about it.)

Dp is still with me. It does put a strain on the relationship, especially as ds2 is still in our bed at night. We have to make a real effort to spend time together rather than just getting on with all the things we have to do, separately, and then dropping into bed exhausted (if ds2 isn't screaming at that point). I didn't book any babysitters for a while because I didn't think it was fair on them to look after ds2, and I suppose I also thought they wouldn't look after him as well as I would, but I've realised I have to have a break sometimes, and it's so important to spend time with dp without the kids around.

If you want to talk more, the discussion groups are very helpful, or do CAT me. It can really help to grumble to other people who've been through the same thing!

[ess]

Hi SamN- been to docs this morning and they have put her on Zantac- they phoned the ped first. Havent told me much about it but shes only on a low dose so will try it tomorrow. If she has a bad reaction ill leave things as they are. Hope things improve with you soon. What is CAT? Sorry, Im new to all this lingo.Thanks so much.

[SamN]

Hi ess, glad your dd is on something stronger rather than having to wait 10 weeks. Really hope it makes a difference, to all of you. CAT stands for 'contact another talker' and you can do it from the links at the top of the mumsnet talk pages. I've sent a message to you so hopefully you'll get it soon, along with my e-mail address.