Reflux?

KittyFX

I have a fussy, colicy baby. At first I thought It was normal cluster feeding, and maybe it was. Then maybe it was something I was eating, now I am thinking a light case of reflux from the symptoms I read in baby411. I called the pedi about it and she said to monitor it and come in if it gets worse or I am more confident that is what it is and they would prescribe meds. I'm not thrilled with giving meds but if he does have reflux then I want to. Question is, does anyone know how well the meds work? Like if he does have reflux and starts meds will I notice an immediate improvement? This baby spits up once or twice a day, gets hiccups once a day, gasps for air like he's choking once every other day, sounds congested like there is bm or spit up in his nose maybe once a day or every other day. And the crying and screaming...maybe 1-3 hours every 12 hours and not every night at the same time though it does seem to happen more in the evening but that may be unrelated behavior. For example, i just finished holding him for 1.5 hours while he CIO after a feeding and it is 5:15pm. This is often combined with a backward body thrust and burping and nursing does not help but maybe for a minute.

JenniferL923

About 5 weeks is when DS was diagnosed with reflux.  He had symptoms similar to what you're describing, except when he would spit up (which wasn't after every single feeding) it was semi-projectile.  He was so so gassy, had hiccups (that annoyed the crap out of him), and was fussy/grouchy.  I (or my boobs) were the only thing that could calm him down and make him happy.  He also was congested and had a cough--which I read could be a sign of reflux.

He liked to eat often - like every 1.5 -2 hours.  My pedi said that eating is what makes their tummies feel better, it keeps the acid down, and so they want to eat frequently. 

At first we tried Zantac and that seemed to work for the first 3-4 days, he was a new baby.  However, he either got worse or it just didn't work as well as it was appearing because he started to slide back into his old habits after about 7-10 days.  We switched over to Zegerid (Prilosec) and that took 3 days to kick in, but he slowly got better.  I also cut out dairy as that could also be a sensitivity.  It took about 2 weeks before I noticed a drastic change but he was so much better with the meds and me going dairy free.

The good news is that most babies get better by 4 months and most outgrow the reflux by 6 months.  I think we are almost there.  He still spits up but it usually isn't much and just dribbles out.  He's still on the meds but occasionally will miss a dose and it isn't a crisis like it used to be.  I plan to discuss trying to wean off of them at his 6 month appointment later this month.  I've started gradually eating more and more dairy and am almost back to a my normal habits. 

You could try to just cut out dairy, but you won't notice full improvement for about two weeks as that is how long it takes the milk protein to work its way completely out of your system. 

thethomps

Prevacid was a godsend for us.  DD had the worst reflux and would cry for about 10 hours a day.  I thought I was going to lose it.  I have a dairy allergy, so I wasn't eating any dairy.  I had to cut out wheat and tomatoes, too, because those were causing reactions.  We noticed an improvement within a couple of days once she started the meds. 

Mainer-in-Texas

DD was diagnosed with reflux because she was colicky and projectile spit-up like 20 times a day. She also had the hiccups a lot. We tried both Zantac and Zegerid, and I cut out dairy, but I really don't feel like either helped much. We just had to wait for it to slowly get better, which it did once she started sitting up around six months.

But, I think the meds do help a lot of babies! DD also has hypotonia, and the neurologist said that was probably the cause of the reflux and the fussiess, and the reflux meds can't do anything to treat hypotonia.

KittyFX

Thanks so much for all of the info. I think I will try to cut out the dairy and see if that helps at all. DS isn't crying 10 hours a day but it is enough to get to you. We have a couple more weeks until his 2 month appt so maybe I will just see if cutting out dairy and keeping him upright more helps until then.

GeauxTigers82

Yay for Prevacid!

My twins both had pretty significany reflux, and it did seem to be worse in the evening and night.

We started on Zantac, but that only worked for a week or two, and not that well. Then we added on Prevacid. That combo ended up being meds 4 times a day for 9 months...not fun. But, they worked! We had to keep increases the dose as they got bigger, but we're finally off! In fact, they need to be weaned off the bottle (13 months), but they're finally at a point where they can enjoy their bottle without pain, so I hate to take it away!

If you really think he's in pain (and our Pedi Pulmonologist did say that "congestion" in infants can be due to reflux), I would definately do the meds. They are pretty benign, as far as meds go. Worth it!