Major reflux

Erinbsise

Hey! I had my son at 32 weeks. He is now 9 weeks old. He had an upper GI done about a month ago and they diagnosed him with significant reflux. He is on Prevacid twice a day. He also has a milk protein allergy. I prop him up when he eats, sleeps, etc. But every single time I lay him down for bed he spits up. Sometimes hardly anything then sometimes it's a lot. No matter how long I leave him propped up after he eats he spits up when he's in his crib. Anyone have any suggestions how to minimize this? I cannot put rice in his formula bc it severely constipates him and makes him miserable. Any suggestions are appreciated! Thanks!

313Meg

Do you lay him on an incline? On his back or what? I started laying my LO on his left side. (He has bad reflux too just the silent kind). The left side keeps his stomach higher and helps w digestion. Best way to lay a reflux baby according to Dr. Sears.

Erinbsise

AFwifelife said:

What formula are you giving him?

He is on ready to feed similac alimentum

Erinbsise

AFwifelife said:

Erinbsise said:

AFwifelife said:

What formula are you giving him?

He is on ready to feed similac alimentum

That still contains the milk protein.  Some LOs are very sensitive and have to switch to an elemental formula like Elecare or Neocate.


We tried elecare and it made him worse. Our GI dr told us that ready to feed alimentum is one of the few formulas no corn in it so that's what could be bothering him with the powder formulas. And the milk protein in alimentum is hydrolized so they really don't even have to digest it.

Erinbsise

The reason I don't think it's the formula is bc his amount if spit up has gone down tremendously since being on the ready to feed. He also had a bad rash on his face and it literally disappeared over night when he started the ready to feed. The GI says the spit up on his sleep is normal for reflux. She has him on carafate to help soothe his throat nosed and stomach bc she says when he does that it probably burns. So it's not like he's spitting up huge amounts. It's normal amounts I just hate he gets scared and chokes on it.

Erinbsise

I may have to find something like that for him to sleep in. I have the crib mattress elevated but he is a mover when he sleeps and ends up on the other side of the crib so it's pointless to have it elevated!

JaysonandKristin

Is the spitting up limiting his weight gain?

If he's on a PPI, the spit up is pretty much neutral, so it shouldn't be aggravating the tissues in his esophagus.  At worst, he's at risk for aspiration pneumonia.  

Spitting up shouldn't really be a concern if the reflux is being treated.  

I'm assuming your GI is handling managing allergies and ruling out EoE as compounding factors?

Erinbsise

JaysonandKristin said:

Is the spitting up limiting his weight gain?

If he's on a PPI, the spit up is pretty much neutral, so it shouldn't be aggravating the tissues in his esophagus.  At worst, he's at risk for aspiration pneumonia.  

Spitting up shouldn't really be a concern if the reflux is being treated.  

I'm assuming your GI is handling managing allergies and ruling out EoE as compounding factors?

I hope this doesn't make me sound stupid but what is EoE? His spit up is very minimal compared to where we were at before Prevacid and it doesn't seem to bother him. He also has no problem gaining weight!

JaysonandKristin

EoE = eosinophilic esophagitis

If he's not having any discomfort and it's actually helping to reduce the amount of spit up, you're in a good place (obviously, talk to the GI about where the doc wants LO to be on the spit up scale), but spit up is happening because the sphincter at the top of LO's stomach is immature (totally normal for young babies).  As it grows in strength over time, the spit up will stop.

So, as long as the Prevacid dose continues to be adjusted for LO's weight, the spit up should be doing no harm.  

Good luck!!  

insertclevername

DS1 could not be laid flat on his back for the first 4-6 months.  He had reflux that required Prevacid and MSPI that required my diet be strictly modified and Alimentum for supplementation.  I kept him in the swing for naps and the Rock N Play for overnight sleep.  At 11 weeks we transitioned him to the crib but had it elevated with a wedge both at home and at daycare.  If the crib at an incline is still causing him to spit up and choke I would try the Rock N Play.

kochanda

I just started putting my 6 week old in the rock n play at night and she spits up much less now.  I used to find her in a pool of it in the crib.  The rock n play is a lifesaver!

Erinbsise

Thanks everyone! I told our GI some days he will drench a bib in spit up and some days it's only a few drops so she didn't seem concerned at all!

Erinbsise

Also, sometimes when he spits up it comes out of his nose. Anyone else experience this? He loses he breath and screams and cries and almost gives me a heart attack! I told the GI about it and she didn't seem worried but she put him on carafate 3 times a day to help with healing everything.

babyf86

My LO has severe reflux as well. We have her sleep in her RnP. Even hours after I feed her, if I lay her flat she ends up in a pool of spit up. If it's not hurting your LO, I wouldn't worry too much - I would just really look into getting a RnP (it's a lifesaver for me). Also, my LO has the same thing happen with spit up coming out her nose and screaming. But my GI specialist says there's no need for concern.

If you really want your LO in the crib, there are reflux mattresses. We have one that we got from a friend and have not tried it yet, but it looks like it could work well. (Although I've heard it was quite pricey)