Newborn not having bowel movements and question about Dr.

jess1082 · January 2011

My DS is 11 days old and is not having regular bowel movements. After not going at all for 48 hours I took the advice of a few people and used a Q-tip with some vaseline and that seemed to work but now 24 hours later - nothing again. Several people have told me to add karo syrup to his bottle or to give him and ounce of sugar water but I am not sure if this is OK to do. Has anyone had any similar experience with this? He is formula fed.

Also, I called the Dr.'s office yesterday and no one every called me back. I called again today and the person that answered the phone said that the nurses were busy and asked me to call back in a couple of hours if I still had not head anything. I then called back and was once again told that the nurses were busy but he asked them and they said I should take him to the ER which I thought was a little extreme. I just wanted some advice on what I could do to help him out or to know if this was normal. I really like the Dr but I am concerned about the way I have been treated over this issue. It seems like they should be a little more concerned and helpful in the case of an 11 day old baby. Do you think I am over reacting or should I switch doctors?

rosesandpeonies · January 2011

no you are not overreacting. I actually always talk to a nurse....I am never told to call back....I might have to wait on hold a few mins but I always get a nurse. I would probably switch dr.'s since it sounds like it is going to be a problem.

I would tell the receptionist that you are not calling back and that you would like an appt. asap so that you can get some help with this issue.

amalloy1 · January 2011

Not at all. It may be all routine for them, but this is all new for you & they're supposed to be there to suppor you & your little one. I think you should go to the ER if you need to get your concerns addressed, & then talk to your Dr. & maybe file a complaint so they can fix the problems at their office. They should have a triage nurse who answers calls & if they're trying to have their nurses do patient care AND triage calls to save money, then that's a problem. The nurses can't do both jobs at the same time & do them well if the practice is busy!

Good luck!

Smores730 · January 2011

There's no way I'd stay with that practice. I only have experience with the practice I've been with for 2 years for my DD, but there's no way they'd dismiss my concerns like that.

Is your LO on formula or breastmilk? It's normal for formula fed babies to not poop every day but I'm not sure if that's the case at only 11 days old. I know my own DD went almost 3 days without pooping and I was very concerned but then she exploded. She was several months old though

ashmin · January 2011

Wow, that is really awful how you were treated by your Ped's staff. I would definitely switch doctors. I called my doctor after hours (answering service) and she called me back within 10 minutes.

Sorry I don't have much advice on the not pooping regularly. As PP said, I would get appt asap.

watermellens · January 2011

Is your LO in distress over this? My pedi has said several times that some babies poop with every feeding and it's also normal for some to only go every few days (or even longer between poops).

And ditto what others said about your pedi's office...I would be looking for a new doctor!

spunkyprincessmande · January 2011

My son has had stomach issues almost since the day he was born. Our pedi told us every baby is different. Some go 10-12 times per day (holy cow!) and others go every 3-5 days. Unless the consistency changes and has more "shape" to it (like play-doh) it's not constipation. When we told her our son was straining and turning red, etc. and nothing would help (we bicycle his legs at every diaper change and when he's trying to push, we've used Mylicon, warm baths, massage his tummy, we even tried the Q-tip once and it didn't work!) she said that is a sign of constipation and we can give him an ounce of nursery water or a tablespoon of prune juice a day to see if that helps. Not sure how much that would translate to for an 11 day old. But I definitely wouldn't give him anything unless your pediatrician says so, I think I've heard that they say don't do karo syrup anymore, but I'm not sure why.

BallSox · January 2011

gah! Bump ate my post.

First of all--the receptionist sucks and the phone nurses should answer Now you may have to wait, but they should eventually get to you.

Secondly, I asked the urgent care doc (when I was there for a back issue) one morning right after L was born and she told me unless the following things were happening, it wasn't an emergent concern (taking into consideration that L is EBF):

* Fever * Distended stomach * Longer than a week * Straining hard to poo * Disinterest in feedings * Dropping # of wet diapers * Inconsolably upset * Other off the wall for him activities

I asked his actual dr (we had an appt 2 days later) and she confirmed what doc #1 had said. This past Wednesday, the BM discussion came up at the breastfeeding support group and the LC confirmed.

Some babies poop all the time, some don't.

Personally, I'd not supplement any sugar water, etc nor do the qtip trick. You don't want to get him/her where he needs help to poo on a regular basis I'd also not go to the ER (assuming the only issue is lack of poo). He/she just might not be an active pooper. However, I would get a new doc.

But then again, take it as you will, I'm obviously not a doctor.

grnshdw · January 2011

I think the doc should call you back but in a bf baby that would be normal. Park nicollet is a health care provider in the twin cities that has someone available 24 hours- maybe you should call and say you are desperate. Always trust your gut- I changed docs for that reason!

themissizz · January 2011

We add Karo syrup to our LO's bottle - our pedi says 1 tbsp per 4 oz, but I only use about half that amount, regardless of the bottle size because I don't want him to have all that corn syrup/sugar/carbs. Your LO may just have a slow digestive system. Karo syrup will not cause any type of dependence, it's not a laxative. It works the way a stool softener would - pulling liquid from what would be urine which instead stays in the colon and softens their poop.

klmtjg · January 2011

My daughter had the same problem when she was about 11 weeks old. My pedi told me to put a tsp of dark karo syrup in her bottle at every feeding until she was regular again. Another reason could be that you are putting too much formula in her bottle and you might want to cut back of the scoops a little. I was also told to try a rectal tickling if nothing else works because it gets the bowls to start moving. Just take a thermometer and tickle the outside of the rectum. Hope this might have helped a little. I know how stressful if can be for you LO to not have a bowel movement.

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