Silent Reflux

[Nicio123]

Has anyone’s LO been put on omeprozole if so what was your experience of it? My LB (5 weeks old) has silent reflux and HV discused with GP and they have prescribed him with this but was informed that this is normally something a paediatrician would prescribe. Have read mixed reviews on this being used for infants and so a bit nervous to start him on this but at same time want to help him as he is so unsettled with the reflux. Initially he was on Aptamil first stage milk and when his symptoms started he was prescribed infant gaviscon which did nothing to help but gave him constipation. HV has then advised to contact GP to get a prescription for ranitidine but we were informed that this has been discontinued and so I done some research and changed his milk to Aptamil comfort milk as I read a lot of parents describing how this helped their LO with silent reflux (he also has colic so would help with this too) I have seen a tiny bit of improvement since changing the milk in terms of he doesn't seem like he is choking but he is still terribly unsettled and especially after his feeds... have been doing all things like sitting him up during feed, winding regularly, keeping him upright after feed changed tests etc. Not getting much joy with anything so any advice would help and just looking for a bit of peace of mind xx

I’d certainly recommend the Omeprazole. DD has quite bad silent reflux and it has worked wonders for her. My GP didn’t know how to prescribe it for infants so we were referred to a paediatrician. She was fantastic and had no hesitation prescribing it for DD, who was seven weeks at the time. She said it was absolutely safe for babies and had even used it for her own child.

It can be a bit of a faff to give though. Make sure you follow the instructions carefully as there are certain things you can’t do as it makes the medicine ineffective (like crush the dispersible tablet, or give it with milk). It’s certainly worth doing as in my experience with both DS and DD silent reflux tends to get worse over time as the acid damages the baby’s oesophagus over time, which makes it hurt them more. All the best with it, hope it gets sorted

My paediatrician prescribed it. Like pp said it is a pain to administer but worth it if it cures baby. Unfortunately it didnt help mine who went on to have a milk allergy so is now on prescribed milk alongside infant gaviscon which seems to have helped. Does baby have any rashes? Cold like symptoms like blocked nose etc x

Following as I’m in a similar situation.
My dd has a paeds referral in for omeprazole, ranitadine would usually be tried first but there is a worldwide shortage due to covid.

I would go for it. I've had two reflux babies (the first non-silent, the second silent) and I feel like a lot of time was wasted with the first one trying other things when omeprazole ended up being the only thing that worked. The difference was night and day. When I saw the signs in my second child, even though it was not as severe as the first (who'd ended up In A&E at one point), I didn't have any of those first-time worries and just asked for omeprazole right away. Luckily my doctor understood enough of what we'd already been through with the first one to agree!

Also following as I think my DD may have reflux. I thought all babies had reflux as their digestive tract is so immature, but my DD does seem to be especially bothered and makes throat clearing and coughing sounds lying flat and also vomits a lot!

I’d rather avoid medication if possible but have definitely heard that omeprazole works anecdotally.

As PPs have mentioned,
ranitidine has been recalled due to the possible carcinogen NDMA being present in older batches, so that’s a no go for now.

Hope your referral comes through soon!

I’m still waiting to hear back about the paeds referral, we give DD infant gaviscon in her first day feed and then at around her teatime feed. Most days it helps with stopping her from bringing up milk directly after a feed but she still brings up copious amounts of clear fluid, screams, sweats, arches her back and flails her arms and legs about. Usually starts 20 minutes after a feed or sometimes during a feed. It only used to happen at evening and bedtime feeds but it’s now happening during almost every feed. I’m reluctant to give her any more infant gaviscon, as her poops are pretty well formed on the 2 sachets a day.
I’m also not that keen on giving her medications, but prior to starting the infant gaviscon we ended up in a&e as she wasn’t taking enough in, was then throwing that up and wasn’t peeing, so I really don’t want to go back to that.

DS has silent reflux, and whilst omeprazole did help his reflux symptoms he had terrible wind from it so I got him switched to Lansoprazole which I've found suits him better.

There's a Facebook group called Living with Reflux (Child Support) which I have found so helpful with advice as there are so many parents that have been through the same thing and tried all the various medications ☺️

Both my daughters have had silent reflux. I’ve never needed any referral for omeprazole, just got it from my GP! It’s a wonder drug in my opinion. My daughters have gone from miserable, crying, not sleeping babies to calm, happy & reasonable sleepers! It stops acid production, thus no more pain.

It doesn’t stop the sick, that’s not what omeprazole is for. It should make the vomiting less painful though. My 8 week old is a projectile vomiter. That needs Gaviscon or we use Carobel, a natural milk thickener to keep the milk down!

Zero side effects from omeprazole here.

I also took omeprazole during both pregnancies. Zero heartburn. Fantastic! 😁

Ps. It’s not Covid that’s causing ranitidine to not be available. It was withdrawn in 2019 due to them finding a cancer causing element in the drug. At first, it was just specific manufacturers but now I think it’s most of them.