How to diagnose silent reflux?

giggler25 · July 2014

Has your LO been diagnosed with silent reflux? If so, what was the process like and how long did it take? I have a feeling that my DD might suffer from silent reflux (she doesn't puke a lot but does gag a lot and make faces and noises like she has a hairball) and today was screaming for no apparent reason and nursing a LOT to the point where she actually did spit up a lot bc she ate so much. I read that BM can act as an antacid to babies, though this behavior could also be the result of a growth spurt I'm sure. But the occasional gagging and hairball-type actions have been going on for weeks.

I mentioned the reflux to the pedi and her response was that all newborns have reflux to a certain degree because their digestive systems aren't yet matured. I guess my question is.... when does it get to the point where it's a formal diagnosis of reflux with silent reflux, and medicine is given. While I certainly don't want to give DD any medicine that isn't necessary, it makes me sad to think she might have acid in her throat that I don't know about or fix. Pedi said that as long as she's eating and gaining weight there is likely no need to do anything, but I don't want her to suffer if she's having acid pain in her throat, though the trick is there's no way to know for sure....

DD is 7 weeks old. Thanks for sharing your experience!

spacepotatoes · July 2014

It seems like doctors don't interfere too much as long as the baby is still feeding, having enough wet/poopy diapers, and is gaining weight. If your DD does seem to be in pain, I'd be more persistent.

Is the gagging during a feed or after? If during, could it be a forceful letdown issue?

Krisd6 · July 2014

I have this same question! My little one is 6 weeks old and spits up pretty much after every feeding. He cries and pulls up of his legs as if he is in pain after feeding some times and I can't tell if it is due to the reflux/gas or a growth spurt. The spitting up is not projectile which is good but it is consistent. I elevate when feeding, burp and keep him upright for 15 min after, have tried mylacon to decrease gas. I'm also trying probiotics now per the MD.

She told me if it continues they would do an ultrasound on him and then if needed start meds.

I question if I should call and get this done or wait 3 weeks to our next md appt. I hate seeing him Uncomfortable and feel so helpless.

chillypenguin · July 2014

Both my girls had/have silent reflux, although DD2 does spit up a little bit. With both girls (different pediatricians), I just told the doctors their symptoms (arching back while eating, screaming after eating, gagging, and making "chewing" motions) and they both started them on meds based on my description.

They were both started on Zantac, which is pretty mild with few side effects. Worked great for DD1, but DD2 has been tougher. With Zantac, it's a weight based dosage so as DD1 gained weight, her dosage would need increased. It was easy to tell when because her symptoms showed up again. We had weaned her off medication around 9 months old.

lrmrtn · July 2014

We're concerned about this too but my pedi said not to worry about it if they're gaining weight and sleeping okay. She said if it was bad, he wouldn't sleep more than an hour without screaming and DS will sleep on average 3-4 hours at night in each cycle.

momo214 · July 2014

My pediatrician didn't use the term "silent reflux" but I guess maybe DD has that? She was diagnosed with reflux after I took a video of her behavior to show her pediatrician. LO would start jerking repetitively, acted like she couldn't breathe, kind of gagging and pulling her head far to the side then screaming when the episode was over. I was convinced she was having seizures until she was prescribed Zantac and it instantly stopped. She's never been one to spit up or barf.

QOTR · July 2014

@chillypenguin‌, did your LOs exhibit the signs you mention after each feeding? My guy will occasionally arch his back and be fussy after feedings, but I sometimes think the fussiness is a trapped burp because he acts better once that escapes. Other times he'll eat peacefully and drift off to sleep. I'm having a hard time determining if he is in pain or just fussy.

giggler25 · July 2014

QOTR said:

@chillypenguin‌, did your LOs exhibit the signs you mention after each feeding? My guy will occasionally arch his back and be fussy after feedings, but I sometimes think the fussiness is a trapped burp because he acts better once that escapes. Other times he'll eat peacefully and drift off to sleep. I'm having a hard time determining if he is in pain or just fussy.

I'm in this same exact boat. When I asked the pedi about it at her one month visit I believe pedi mentioned that if it's affecting more than 30% of her feedings then there is likely an issue.

giggler25 · July 2014

@spacepotatoes -- While I have noticed gagging during feeding that I think is related to letdown, she's also done it when not eating.... almost like she has a hairball or something. She's also had projectile spit-up 3 times over the past week. And today she just started randomly choking while I was holding her upright on my shoulder after eating... I'm pretty sure she spit up and then swallowed it and choked. Agreed that pedis only seemed concerned about weight gain.... LO is a chunker so pedi is not concerned... but I don't want it to get to the point where she's not gaining enough wait or realized in her head that she should stop eating so much bc eating is what's making her feel that way. At that point I'm afraid it will be too late to easily correct!

@KrisD6 -- What kind of ultrasound? When I asked my pedi how they confirm/rule out reflux, she said there wasn't really any testing they could do -- it's all too invasive -- she said instead they base diagnosis on what I report to her. This makes me nervous bc I worry that I might be overreacting as a FTM and therefore overly reporting things that may or may not be normal..... I'd hate for her to end up on meds bc I'm hypersensitive to some symptoms which could be reflux, or something else entirely... it's a lot of pressure!

@chillypenguin -- How frequently were your DDs exhibiting those symptoms? Every feeding? Also, what do you mean by chewing motions? Just curious if my DD is doing this but I don't realize it...

@lrmrtn -- Interesting that your pedi mentioned sleeping okay bc this is actually what originally drew my attention to this possible prognosis. The pedi didn't seem focused on the sleeping though... she was more concerned with the eating.

chillypenguin · July 2014

QOTR said:

@chillypenguin‌, did your LOs exhibit the signs you mention after each feeding? My guy will occasionally arch his back and be fussy after feedings, but I sometimes think the fussiness is a trapped burp because he acts better once that escapes. Other times he'll eat peacefully and drift off to sleep. I'm having a hard time determining if he is in pain or just fussy.

Sorry, just saw this. Things have been crazy. She showed her symptoms after most feedings, but she was better in the morning and it progressively got worse and evenings were really rough. Sometimes maybe an hour after her feeding she would make chewing morons even though obviously she had nothing in her mouth. She would also gag randomly even a while after eating.

Want a personalized experience?

How to diagnose silent reflux?

Re: How to diagnose silent reflux?

Choose Another Board

Search Boards