Reflux/Milk allergy?

[Empusa]

DS is 10 weeks old, from a couple of weeks old he has been throwing up a lot of his feeds. Often projectile. He's also been throwing up clear liquid.

I've read a bit about reflux and have noticed he also coughs and hiccups a lot.

He does seem to be in some pain/discomfort as well, I've started to recognise his "in pain" cry as opposed to his "hungry" cry, and I'm hearing the former more frequently. He also wants to feed almost constantly, often every half hour or so, and I'm wondering if he's actually hungry or just feeding for comfort?

We've tried changing his formula to Cow and Gate Comfort, which seemed to help at first, but he's now back to being sick most of the time.

He is putting on weight though.

The other thing I was wondering is if it's a milk allergy/intolerance, as I was allergic/intolerant to milk when I was a baby. Is it likely to be hereditary?

Would you take him to the doctors? Or would you wait and see if he grows out of it?

Should also add, we've tried sitting him up for 20 mins or so after feeds, which doesn't seem to make too much difference, and he doesn't seem unduly bothered by lying on his back.

Forgot to say last night, after feeding (unless he falls asleep during the feed) he'll cry as if he's in pain or straining.

Dd2 had reflux and threw up every feed. Fed often and never seemed to be able to fill - gained weight initially, but stated to lose regularly at about 16 weeks. Cried all the time and arched back when feeding - wanted it as hungry but seemed scared as resulted in pain. Got infant gaviscon which she was on until she was over 3 years old. She also coughed lots too then there was almost a key change when it turned into her being sick. I would speak to your hv or doc. Good luck

That sounds a lot like DS, I'll try and get him to the doctors tomorrow I think. Did the gaviscon help much?

Yes it really helped - I wish I had got it sooner but was fobbed off with "well babies do cry alot!!!" yes, but not all the time!!! The only problem for me was that is was tricky when bf as I had to give on spoon bizarrely after a feed so ended up giving in bottle in end as easier to get into her. Good luck - I feel for you! I once had to get my mum round to hold my baby and mind my toddler whilst I cleaned up all the puddles of sick which seemed to be everywhere on some days!!! Not the best time but I can about it now!!!

It does sound like reflux to me.

Ds1 had colic due to a sensitivity to cow's milk protein. Ds2 had reflux. Both were breastfed when it showed up, but what your ds is doing sounds far more like ds2 to me.

I would take him to the doctors, and be prepared to go back several times if they fob you off, or if whatever they suggest doesn't help. Is your ds putting on weight? The frequent feeds is a good indication, as well as the vomiting, and if he's not putting on weight either the doctor should be taking notice of what you're saying.

With the reflux, in my experience, the GPs take a while to take you seriously, then they give you infant Gaviscon (which does help with some less severe cases). If the Gaviscon doesn't work your child will need to be on medication specifically for acid reflux. But these aren't licensed for use in infants (or they weren't when ds2 was little) so my GPs refused to prescribe them and instead referred us to a paediatrician. Once ds2 was on ranitidine he really improved, so it's worth pushing for a referral if you don't think your baby is getting better.

To confuse matters, however, often reflux is caused by a milk protein sensitivity. (And the food sensitivities are hereditary, and guess what, both dh and I reacted to cow's milk as babies.) But the doctors are better at recognising reflux than food sensitivities.

If you're worried about the cow's milk formula, there aren't many good options. Don't do what I did with ds1 and put him on soya formula, as loads of babies with cow's milk sensitivities then develop a reaction to soya. There is a very expensive goat's milk formula that some babies find easier to digest. Or there are pre-digested formulas that taste and smell disgusting but are supposed to be less likely to cause reactions.

Are you completely formula feeding or mixed feeding? Because breastmilk is far quicker digested than formula so it is best for babies with reflux. And if you're mixed feeding you could cut out milk in your own diet plus go onto the goat's milk formula for a while, just to see if it makes a difference.

With ds2 we actually went to a private allergy specialist (a proper doctor, not a quack) but he didn't come up as allergic to any of the big things (nuts, fish, cow's milk and I forget what else). However if your child is found to have an allergy then you should be able to get the pre-digested formulas on prescription.

hth

I went to the doctor a few weeks ago and also got fobbed off with the whole "babies do cry and bring up some milk" thing. Wont let them fob me off tomorrow.

DS is putting on weight thankfully, though the last time the HV was here she did say he should have put on more weight.

I'm just formula feeding, DS refused to latch on unfortunately. :(

Right, well wish me luck for tomorrow!

Good luck empusa!! I can only second what everyone else has said, I found that my GP treated me like a neurotic first time mum and told me 'babies aren't perfect'....I didn't want a perfect baby, just one that didnt scream in pain and choke all night!

I got Gaviscon initially which only worked for a week or so, and then it took me having a meltdown in the surgery and crying that I couldn't cope for the GP to reluctantly give ranitidine and Enfamil anti-reflux formula- and since then he's been a totally different baby. So really, don't be afraid to make a nuisance of yourself- you know your DC best, and if your gut tells you something's not right, it probably isn't.

Thankyou. I did doubt myself at first, but I just know DS isn't right. Unfortunately, not having experienced any babies before, I do find my views get dismissed.

I can empathise completely, DS is my first and paired with the fact that I'm relatively young (24) I came away from my initial appointments feeling like a teenager who'd been told off. To not be supported was devastating, and I honestly think it pushed me close to PND as I just wasn't enjoying parenting DS and felt so trapped in this grey blur of screaming baby and constant sickness!

It was my mum who pushed me to keep going back and came with me in the end, and i'm so glad she did- normally I'm quite confident but I seemed to lose all ability to fight my corner in the docs (apart from the final meltdown!) Is there a family member/ friend that could go with you if you feel it would give you a bit of moral support?

Yep, DH is coming too. Hopefully with the two of us we'll get somewhere.

Luckily, aside from the distress of seeing DS upset I'm loving being a parent. But can totally see how this would push you towards PND, it's hard work.

Just to help myself, I need to tell the doctor about..

• the constant vomiting
• the amount of vomit and that it is often projectile
• the vomiting of a clear liquid
• the hiccups
• the coughing
• the constant hunger
• the "in pain" crying
• the agitation while feeding
• the crying after feeding
• my history of milk allergy/intolerance
• he sometimes chokes while feeding

Sounds good- I would also mention that the HV had said she was not completely happy with his weight gain too- I found that my GP and my HV had very different views of 'thriving' but it may help you if you sound like a professional shares some concern iyswim?

All in all though, you sound much more 'together' than I
was, so I'm sure you'll get your point across just fine. If you do get gaviscon and it doesn't work though, don't be disheartened, it's not a cure all- maybe consider asking for Enfamil or another anti-reflux formula- they're designed to be thicker, so stay down easier. And like I say, ranitidine really was the miracle for us! Let us know how it goes tomorrow!

We had this! We settled on Farleys formular milk (7yrs ago now!) and held her upright for 45 mins after EVERY feed. Very tedious during night feeds, but she kept it down that way. She grew out of it by 1 yr old and has no allergies / intolerances now.
Good luck.

My first had reflux, quite badly but was exclusively BF.

Ah yes!

DH has also pointed out we should mention the DS gets quite bloated.

YY to being bloated- poor DS's tummy used to swell ridiculously and go rock hard. He's just so chilled out now that it makes me to think how much pain he must have been in to be such a horror!! Ah well, all sorted now, although I dread to think what his medical notes say about his crying mother insisting there was something wrong and she wasn't leaving until they addressed it!!

hi, we're going through this atm with ds2. It sounds like I have a understanding realistic doctor as ds was prescribed ranitidine straight away, didn't work for ds, so he was put on infant gaviscon which has been working. was starting to wean him off but have had a few issues again, so increased the dose and all seems ok.
The symptoms you describe are exactly like ds......hope you get the answers you need.

Quick post from me as have to go now but didn't want to read and not leave a post...

Dd2 has reflux as a result of a milk allergy. She has been on nutramigen formula since. 3 months old and after nearly having a nervous breakdown with a baby who had exactly the same symptoms as yours (she only stopped crying when feeding or sleeping and fed a lot, and only slept once I'd fed her tl sleep) after two trips to a and e after a nasty virus, the paediatric consultant there diagnosed a cows milk protein allergy. Within three days of starting on the new formula ( i Had been bf but top ups had clearly made matters worse, as i thought she was just hungry initially) she was like a new baby. I couldn't stop crying in relief that first morning she was awake and not feeding or crying.

My doc was useless and even had the temerity to ask me about what research I'd done as she didn't know anything about it. We're under the care of a gasteroenterologist consultant and dd (8 months now) will be tested for a range of allergies next month. She's still suffering from reflux a bit, for which she may be put back on meds for soon - the combination of weaning and practising crawling seems ro have made it worse, but the new formula initially got it under control.

It's expensive, but you can buy nutramigen and other hydrolysed formulas (neocate, pepti junior) over the counter. You could try it and if it works then that's enough proof for the doc to prescribe it to you.

Really must dash now as this was a bit longer than anticipated!

Oh gosh, this sounds exactly like DD a few months ago!
We were told on numerous occasions by three different GP's that it was colic. We tried every remedy going, colief, infacol, gripe water, staydown milk, comfort milk and nothing worked. Eventually another GP agreed that it sounded like reflux and prescribed Gaviscon Infant. This seemed to help a little but then DD had diarrhoea and we found blood within it.
After a stay in hospital she was diagnosed with allergic ulcerative colitis caused by a cows milk protein allergy. She was prescribed a hydrolysed milk (Aptamil Pepti in which the protein is still present but just extensively broken down so that the body does not recognise it as an allergen) but we were told that she might need a completely 'man made' milk such as neocate if she still reacted to this. She was also given ranitidine to help the ulcers heal and we were advised to keep her on the Gaviscon with every feed as reflux and cows milk protein allergy go hand in hand.
Within a couple of days she was a different baby, happy, smiley, contented and settled. She started sleeping through the night and having regular naps in the day without having to sleep upright on our chests.
She's now seven months old and thriving. Now we're weaning on a total dairy free diet under the care of a dietitian. She's off all medication and we'll begin some dairy food challenges when she turns one to see if she's outgrown it.
Please please trust your gut instinct as a mum. I knew all along in my heart that something wasn't right and sometimes feel guilty that I didn't advocate more strongly on her behalf.
If you have any questions please just ask, I'd be only to happy to help.
Good luck, I know how tough it is.

Thankyou everyone! You are all wonderful!

Can I ask whether you noticed problems with your DC's pooing? DS alternates between diarrhoea and thick dry clay like poo (which seems to cause him some discomfort). It's definitely not the same as it was at first (after the meconium obviously). We think it might be because of the amount of comfort milk he is having? It's also really really green, and he often goes 2 days without pooing.

Not sure if this is normal, or connected to the other issues?

Can't say whether it's related to the reflex stuff or the milk but I know that before we got the Enfamil, DS was on aptamil and I tried the comfort one and he screamed even more for hours after and was really horrendously constipated and windy, and when he did finally go it was solid, poor thing. After this he had much looser poo, almost like he had 'cleared the blockage' iyswim? His poo was often green too, even when I was breastfeeding, and this was mainly in the evenings and when he was more windy and in pain.

I wish I had know about mumsnet when I was going through this - it was really awful. All these posts are making me think back to "the bad old days" and shudder!

Just got back from the doctors, and despite all the symptoms she said "doesn't sound like reflux to me" Apparently him gaining any weight means it can't be reflux.

We've got to get the HV to "observe" him feeding now.

Empusa I feel ur pain

Dd is 12 weeks. The last 8 weeks we've been dealing with reflux. It took 6 weeks of back n forth to the gp with it. We were told it's trapped wind spend more time burping, then to try infacol. Then we were told it's colic try Colief. Then try the Colief for one more week. I begged for gaviscon but they said they are reluctant to medicate for reflux UNLESS there's a weight issue. Dd has only been gaining an oz a week. Hurrah they begrudgingly gave me gaviscon. That made no difference. Just made her worse. So we've been referred back to the hospital for stronger stuff (which still ain't working) basically the past 8 weeks I've been dealing with a baby that doesn't cry but screams 10hrs none stop and doesn't sleep I'm close to ending mat leave and going back to work

Anyway I recommend another opinion. But if ur bubz is gaining weight they may tell u to self manage. Keep them upright, use slings, a dummy to help produce saliva. If worst comes to the worst you can get infant gaviscon over the counter. It just gets pricey

That's utter rubbish! Our DD was gaining weight really well yet she still had reflux and cows milk protein allergy. I have some boxes of Infant Gaviscon that we no longer need if you want to give it a go?

Empusa, any chance of seeing another GP at your doctors? The one you've seen today doesn't sound that helpful tbh.

Given everything you've said, especially about the slow weight gain, I would be pushing for an urgent referral to the paediatric team.

My DD has reflux and we kept being told she'd grow out of it, she still hasn't at 2.5 but the drugs keep it under control! Good luck