ranitidine (zantac) for GORD - any advise very much appreciated

[Mellieandmin]

I have posted before on my DD and she is still suffering from constant vomitting and diarrhea.

We have seen a consol paed this morning who has diagnosed Reflux. DD is now 10 months and projectile vomits her night feed every other night. She was treated for reflux as a very small baby with Infant Gaviscon and now I have been told to put her back on that plus we have been prescribed Ranitidine (Zantac). I read on another website that a mother said her DC became susceptible to viral gastroenteritis due to the ranitidine.

I am getting desperate and really want to give this medicine a go. Poor DD has not had more than 2 weeks well since September. She is intollerant to eggs and allergic to Penicillin. She is being tested for allergies to Eggs, Diary, Soya and Wheat at a year.

She is failing to gain weight (one pound total since the start of November) and I feel her developement is suffering. She does not crawl like her peers and only stands on tip toes if you hold her hands and does not pull herself up to standing yet.

Help?

Thanks in advance.

Can anyone please give me any advice on Ranitidine. I am desperate for some good news!

ds1 had ranitidine for 9 monsth and it help loads, he had no side effects at all

Thanks magnolia, that is soooooo good to hear. Did you have to dose with Gaviscon too?

Yep we started off with Gaviscon then moved onto both and then Gaviscon became such a faff as ds1 was breastfed that we only used the ranitidine from 6-9 months.

Hi MellieandMin,

You poor things! Sorry to hear about your LO's reflux. My DS is 9 1/2 months and has reflux. We found Ranitidine great initially but had to go on to use Omeprazole eventually. so about 4 months Ranitidine and now 2 of Omeprazole.

His symptoms have settled a LOT since starting the meds. Gaviscon never really suited him as it gave him constipation and tummy pains.

In theory reducing the acid of the stomach can make them more prone to tummy upsets as there is less/no acid to kill off the bugs that are swallowed. I was always worried about him sucking on things that had been on the floor etc but has not really come to anything. I always wash dummies/ wet things but toys and things get sucked to death and we have had maybe 1 tummy upset since October when started meds and a few babies I know had it too. So have finally begun to relax about that!

If you are looking for support (I dont really know any other mother/babies with reflux) the website www.littlerefluxers.co.uk can be helpful.

Best of luck with it all.

Magnolia- know the feeling about breastfeeding and giving Gaviscon- it's a pain in the a**e!!!

Hi there,

My DD was on ranitidine for almost 2 years with no side effects, and my DS was on it for a while, and like the previous poster switched to omeprazole and metoclopramide, no tummy issues at all, and like you both my chilkdren suffered from v low weight gain, although devt was not affected, as it was treated quite quickly. Good luck, whatever you decide.

Thanks to you all, it is not nice for other babies to suffer and at the same time it is lovely to hear other people's stories - does that make any sense?

Mognolia, another question, where you told to leave 2 hours between Ranitidien and Gavi?

I don't think I can bear another stomach bug, DD is at Nursery and she picks up everything. She has had a cold since December 11th and I cannot believe it is still going. This is not helping the Refulux either with all the snot!

Thanks davidsmum for explaining the acid thing, that does make sense to me now, will look at the website, I am really open to any help at this stage. Being driven very slightly mad....

PS DS was always on or just below 9th centile. After starting Ranitidine then Omeprazole he has shot up to the 50th.

Only slightly mad? Drove me insane.

DS has had cough/ cold pretty much since start of Jan!

Hello again, been at the soft play area all afternoon. Jolly good, should be lots of nice germs there!!

Davidsmum - my dd is going in the opposite direction. She was born 3 weeks late (ouch) at 9.3 (really, ouch) and was on the 99th percentile, she is now on the 99th percentile for height and on her way down through the 60th for weight. V tall and v lean now!

You are right, mad is a little of an understatement.

Wish me luck - off to the bath and the vomit feed!

My LO was 50th at birth, dropped to below the 9th (admitted as not putting on weight) then managed to keep him at around the 9th just. When got on meds (Zantac) his sicking up stopped dramatically - still a lot though.

He is now around the 9th for length and over 50th for weight- I suspect officially chubby now!!

Always said he would be heavier if he kept his food down

my dd is 8 1/2 months now been on Ranitidine infant gaviscon and domperidon, since two months and we are undergoing tests for wheat ,gluten, eggs, soya already intolance to milk whick makes them failuer to thrive! my dd is below the chart at 14lb very under weight. hope you get sorted soon

Good news, we had a vom free feed (so far, the night is but young) but it did involve me blowing into her face to distract from heaving as it makes her laugh and dancing round the nursery like a mad women waving my arms in the air with a nappy on my head during a coughing fit just to distract. It is knackering just feeding her! I gave the Ranitidine and Gavi, kept them 1.5 hours apart.

Is it cummulative? The doc said it might take a month to take effect - FOR THE LOVE OF MIKE - I could be stark staring bonkers by the time she is a year old!

trace2 - so sorry to hear your dd is struggling so much. DD is also having all of those test but she cannot have them till a year old apparently. Are you having yours done now? Really hope you get sorted soon.

lol i love the idea you dancing round to stop her!

yes we waiting resluts, but been told they may not be right at her age but they need clues ,shes so small

Nexium (esomeprazole) is more frequently prescribed here for GORD.

I think it is the next step up from Rantidine. It's more expensive so less likely to be prescribed.

DS2 had severe GORD (oesophageal bleeding was discovered when they did an endoscopy. He took it (one dose in the morning) everyday for three months and has never had a problem since. He didn't sleep through the night until he was 8 months old, after two weeks on this medicine he was sleeping right through.

DH has also subsequently been diagnosed as having GORD. He was started with Rantidine and then progressed to Esomeprazole (Nexium) when the Rantidine didn't touch sides. It did the trick - a 2 month course and he's much better.

DH was also prescribed with Domperidone - this helps to prevent oesophageal spasm.

Hi,

Ranitidine made a difference within a week in my DS case, but is quite dose dependant. If your LO puts on weight the dose may need to be increased.

What weight and dose are they on?