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Best Paediatrician in London?

36 replies

pizzanoodle · 12/01/2021 19:28

Hi all!
We're worried about our new baby's belly. It's really distended / bloated and it look abnormal to us. We've visited the NHS GP and a hospital A&E as well and have been told that it is gas build up. We've been following their advice - burp her more, bicycle, reduce top ups after breastmilk but it's not getting any better and feels like it's gotten worse and she is also really uncomfortable. Would anyone know who are the leading paediatricians in London? We are happy to go private or NHS as long as it is an expert in the area. How is Evelina Children's Hospital? Or any other Children's Hospital / doctor that are the best? Any advice much appreciated!

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Cormoran · 12/01/2021 22:11

You need to go specific in your search, so in your case more than a general paediatrician , you need a paediatric gastroenterologist.
Both the GOSH www.gosh.nhs.uk/medical-information/clinical-specialties/gastroenterology-information-parents-and-visitors/paediatric-gastroenterology-network
and King's www.kch.nhs.uk/service/a-z/paediatric-gastroenterology
have s specialised service.
Maybe give them a call to find out what they need in order for you to attend their service/department.

You don't specify how old the baby is, if she is vomiting.
Did you take any antibiotics during the pregnancy or since the birth?

pizzanoodle · 13/01/2021 01:05

Thanks @Cormoran! Hasn't occurred to us to look for a gastroenterologist specialist, will certainly do that! Great suggestions.
Our baby is 17 days old so we're worried if it's anything serious it could deteriorate quickly... and no, I haven't taken any antibiotics during pregnancy / since birth.

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OhNoGroken · 13/01/2021 01:15

How many other newborn babies have you seen naked apart from your own? They normally appear quite distended compared to an adult/older child as their organs are relatively larger for their size. Is there anything else about your baby that worries you?

Cormoran · 13/01/2021 03:17

When I was 22 weeks pregnant, I started experienced pain from time to time. I went to the hospital, and the OB/Gyn who visited me told me he knew exactly what I had, a moderate case of first time mum syndrome. And sent me home. 4 days later, I lost my baby boy.

This said @pizzanoodle , the PP has a point, we have an image in our mind of what a normal baby looks like, when the reality is they come in many shapes and sometimes even weird colours. It is. also true that some babies are really unhappy and cry a lot for no reason sometimes for weeks, months,

But we don't know . Yes abdominal distension is common in babies, but not constantly. The belly would swell after feeding and then go down and soft. If the belly stays swollen or is hard, it is a good reason to consult. A doctor should assess abdominal distension with irritability, and make the relevant questions, about how often she has bowel movement, does she have fever , losing weight, ...

Since she is so young, could she still be in the care of the hospital where she was born (no idea how UK system works) .
Take reassurance in the fact that you have seen both the GP and emergency department, so the big risks have been excluded.

Some babies cry a lot. My middle child was the unhappiest baby on earth. Cried non-stop for 8 months. Day and night, even in her sleep (and she didn't sleep much at all) . And now the happiest teenager in the world. We joke that she has already used all the tears her body could produce in the first 8 months of life. Had she been my first, she would have been a single child. She would just cry and cry and cry.

alexdgr8 · 13/01/2021 03:30

have there been any scans/ x-rays done ?

alexdgr8 · 13/01/2021 03:31

have you discussed your concerns with a midwife or health visitor ?

FraterculaArctica · 13/01/2021 03:32

Has your baby been checked for tongue tie? My DS was very bloated, he was swallowing a lot of air because he couldn't latch properly. You could get this checked out first.

pizzanoodle · 13/01/2021 06:53

@Cormoran yeah her belly is distended all the time so quite abnormal it seems to us! She wasn't like that when she was born and around 5 days ago we started noticing the bloated belly...

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MiniMaxi · 13/01/2021 07:03

If belly is very hard that can be something that needs urgent checking (twisted bowel or something like that) but you say you’ve been to A&E so that’s good.

I’m fairly sure you can get an urgent paeds appt at the Portland and at the Hospital of St John & St Elizabeth (NW8) which should cost around £250. Once you’ve hopefully had that reassurance they may be able to recommend a specialist if needed.

At the moment I wouldn’t wait for NHS if you can afford to go private.

Twilightstarbright · 13/01/2021 07:08

I'd highly recommend Dr El Tumi who is a peadiatric gastroenterologist at the Portland. DS had a very distended stomach due to CMPA. He also referred us to his ENT colleagues for tongue tie support.

Cormoran · 13/01/2021 07:15

@pizzanoodle maybe take some photos of bellies or videos of how distressed she is.
In the meantime, try to reduce tea/coffee, switch to oatmilk and careful with citrus, tomatoes since you are breastfeeding. Consider that it would take several days to see - if any - a difference

pizzanoodle · 13/01/2021 07:31

@alexdgr8 we've discussed with the midwives, health visitor and GP and they seem to be all giving us the same answer that she has too much gas. We do really hope that's the problem but her belly being very distended, nothing seem to help and being distended all the time makes us worry that there's something more to it... :( not sure if it is anything related but my husband just reminded me yesterday that she also had a bigger than average belly when we had a 39 weeks scan....

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pizzanoodle · 13/01/2021 07:33

@FraterculaArctica we've removed her tongue tie a week ago but it hasn't seemed to change anything...

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ElsaSchraeder · 13/01/2021 07:35

El Tumi is good as is Neil Shah

pizzanoodle · 13/01/2021 07:36

@MiniMaxi do you know how we can get directly to a specialist?

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pizzanoodle · 13/01/2021 07:38

@Twilightstarbright thanks for the recommendation. I'm breastfeeding almost exclusively now (topping up with expressed breastmilk) but we did top up with formula for the last couple of weeks while waiting for breastmilk supply to be up. I'm guessing once you've pinpointed that it was CMPA then cow milk was cut out of the diet? How long did it take for her distended stomach to disappear?

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Onceuponatimethen · 13/01/2021 07:39

I would call the Portland and go from there - they will connect you to a specialist and you don’t need a GP referral. I needed urgent ENT surgery for my child and got it within two weeks doing this.

Obviously you will need to pay and while a consultation might be say £150-250 private tests can be much more so always check prices at each stage before agreeing to anything. The private ENT op was £2,000

Onceuponatimethen · 13/01/2021 07:39

£2,000 iirc - it was some time ago

pizzanoodle · 13/01/2021 07:40

@Cormoran thanks for the suggestions! Didn't know that citrus is on the list too. I have not drank much milk and I don't have tea / coffee but have cut these from my diet since we've discovered that these might contribute.

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Ostryga · 13/01/2021 07:41

If it is CMPA then it’ll take roughly 2 weeks for the full effects from when you cut dairy out of your diet, but you should start seeing improvements within a few days (I certainly did). It’s definitely worth giving it a go, even if it’s not that. Dd thrived when I cut dairy out.

Just remember there’s tons of hidden dairy in lots of things and even a tiny bit would set Dd back.

Onceuponatimethen · 13/01/2021 07:42

You could call the Portland now - they would be open as they offer a 24 hour Doc around the clock service for children

pizzanoodle · 13/01/2021 07:43

@Onceuponatimethen I see! Does it mean we pay 150-250 for a consultation and then can be connected to a specialist? Can we get connected to the specialist directly? Or find a specialist without going through them?

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MoreHairyThanScary · 13/01/2021 07:45

If you're considering a cmpa intolerance, you need to check everything you are eating, and look for all the different forms of milk- lactose ( can be hidden in medications), whey and whey products, buttermilk, butter, cheeses etc.

I cut dairy for my dd and it made such a difference but i had to check everything...any slight transgression and her problems recurred.

Onceuponatimethen · 13/01/2021 07:45

It would be £150 at least usually for the meeting with the specialist. The Portland won’t charge anything to connect you to the specialist. You can ask the price for the consultation when you make the appointment. You won’t get charged anything else on top of that as long as you don’t agree to any tests while you are there.

If they do recommend tests just ask the price first Flowers

pizzanoodle · 13/01/2021 07:46

@Ostryga I see, so it's cows milk in the mother's diet rather than in the formula. I will give it a try, thanks for the info! Also did your baby demonstrate any other signs other than the distended stomach? Just wondering if any other symptoms overlapped!

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