My 1 month old baby was diagnosed with gerd. he was on prevacid only for a couple weeks but ended up in the hospital. So the NICU dr put him on Reglan and prevacid.
He seemed to be doin fine at the hospital but now it just seems like every time he eats he is pushing and grunting. He sems to still be refluxin a lot and is making me crazy. And still spitt up. He is on nutramigen and rice cereal for feedings.
Is it posible that either one of those medications is not working to keep his reflux under control?
or am I just freakin out and this is the way reflux babies act?
Either way he just seems very uncomfortable...
Soo today I took my baby to the dr and he gave him a higher dose of reglan and to feed him more often.
I know you all mean well, but let me tell you it is a little harsh being "critisized" for feeding my baby cereal and have him on reglan. He is on cereal/reglan because his pedi, GI specialist, and neonatologist think he should. sure they explained all the horrible side effects this medicines have but as they said "would you rather have ur baby suffer them side effects or him die from aspiring liquid into his lungs or choking.." I say I do what i feel is best for him and keep him on meds for now and just hope this will all go away soon.
Thanks everybody for ur comments they were all very helpful.
Yes Rice cereal was the neonatologist and pedi's idea. The thing is he cannot take any liquids without them being thickened because he can breathe it into his lungs, like he has before.
I agree with others, I'd quit the rice cereal. Maybe try another formula? I think they make formulas they are supposed to be easier on the tummy (like for colicky babies). Try something like that . . . . or have you tried a soy formula? I've heard bad stuff about Reglan and have also heard that gerd is over-diagnosed in babies. I'd try a change in formula and see how he does. Good luck!
Y. I am the mom of 3 and my youngest was 6-8wks early (depending upon which calculation lol) and she was in the NICU b/c of apnea brought on by acute GERD. It was so bad we had her on Reglan, Prevacid and Maylox - let me tell you that was almost a year of oh so much fun but it worked. She is now a VERY healthy/happy and STUBBORN 6yo with no side effects. I will say that I let her sleep in her swing at night and bouncy seat during the day - basically she didn't sleep in her bassinet or crib until she was almost 6 months b/c I noticed it was better for her. She spit up so much the first 3 months that I was worried but she was doing good with the weight gain. I did burp her more and another thing I did (with the Dr's permission) was Camomile Tea (very diluted and with sugar added to sweeten it up for her taste) and it helped.
My daughter was on reglan and it did NOTHING for her so i quit giving it to her then I heard all the bad stuff about it and was SO glad that she'd only taken it for about 2 weeks.
Shes been on prevacid for about 2 years and it doesn't seem to do ANY good but they say at least it protects her esophagus. They just told me this week we can try to take her off of it.
I think it may be something besides reflux but I really don't know! I just wanted to warn you about reglan
My grandson has not been diagnosed with gerd, however, his reflux was really bad. His pediatrician changed his formula (he's three months) and he is doing a lot better. Maybe seek a second opinion.
I will pray for your baby and for you.
My son took prevacid and did ok with it, but I didn't give him cereal. I just fed him like CRAZY. Even on prevacid, or some other treatments, they still spit up a lot, but it doesn't hurt them. Sometimes I would feed him like ever 1.5 hrs to keep him full. It was a challenge, but by five months he was just fine. So I would say maybe try using the medication and then just be prepared to give him feedings of milk or formula more often as he does spit a good portion up and will need to make up for it. My boy was a hefty little dude, reflux and all, and once I started feeding him more during the day, he slept really well at night. Good luck!!
Reglan can have horrible side effects! Check into it. Do some research. Talk to other doctors, pharmacists, etc. Plus your baby should only be eating breast milk or formula, no cereal yet.
The rice cereal is a huge no-no. Your baby should not have anything but formula until 5-6 months old. This could be whats causing the problems. Stop feeding cereal.
I don't know anything about GERD, but I do know a little bit about food allergies and what kind of symptoms they cause. I had to take my 3mo old to the hospital after massive spits ups & eventually throwing up what looked like it should've been coming out the other end. If you haven't had your little one tested for food allergies, I would highly recommend it! Food allergies are rampant these days and so few people even think about it. I would rather have my kids tested before putting them on such strong meds that could be solved by changes in their diet.
Just a thought! good luck.
trust your instincts - they usually are right! not every medicine works for every child. i would call you pedi and try something else. my oldest was on prilosec and that didn't do anything so she ended up on prevacid (from 6 weeks old until 22 months old). my second was on prevacid and that didn't work so she ended up on zegerid (from 2 weeks and she's almost a year now and still on). i've heard a lot of other people switching to zegerid b/c it is a newer "better' med.
nutramigen is supposed to be one of the best formulas for reflux babies, so unless you pedi tells you to switch i wouldn't as you probably would make the issues worse. if the dr is having you add rice cereal then continue to do so. both my kids have food allergies and they never had a problem with rice. it is unlikely he would be allergic to rice - milk or soy yes, but not rice.
also, see if the dr has a infant reflux wedge you can use. mine had one i could try before buying. they can sleep upright on the wedge and it helps keep stomach contents down. http://www.pollywogbaby.com/refluxandcolic/acid-reflux-in...
Is the rice cereal doctor recommended because we weren't allowed to start rice cereal until 6 months by our Pediatrician due to the GERD? It aggravates the issues. We used Reglan and feed many very small meals. We also did the gas drops in every bottle before we mixed int eh powder formula. GERD is manageable if you follow the docs advice very closely. If you are not comfortable with the advice change doctors.
My first three were on Reglan and Zantac and my fourth was given Prevacid and something else and it didn't seem to help her at all, I asked for Reglan and Zantac and she was much better.
As for common characteristics of reflux babies, I wonder if they get so used to some behaviors that they still do them even when they don't need to?
I don't know. I'm so sorry you're going through this, it was really awful.
Oh, and you might hear some bad things about Reglan. It's cautioned against using for long term use. But my girls are just fine. Of course, they outgrew GERD and didn't need to up the dosages as they grew and eventually didn't need the meds at all. Most babies outgrow it relatively quickly. But it's better to give them meds short term then to not give them anything and their esophagus burn and they no longer be able to swallow. I know of a little girl whose parents didn't want to give her the meds and now she needs a feeding tube to eat. She's 12!
