Question about weaning medicine and having to go back on it

[scarlet]

Hi there again, I once spoke to you a long time ago, the thread is here...

http://www.bubhub.com.au/community/forums/showthread.php?t=43476

I just have a quick question, my son (now 2 and 9months) was weaned off his medicine (losec) in January and a week later we had a pH probe done and he had minimal reflux, so we were excited about the opportunity to have him off medications and maybe grown out of it.

But two months later all the symptoms started coming back, and they got really bad when he developed a cold, we took him back to the gastroenterologist who said he needed to be back on meds, and he has been great since they started taking effect. Really, really great!

So my question is, is it common to come off medications this long, without any reflux and then to come back so severely?

Is this a good sign that one day he could be reflux free or does sometimes it take a while after they have been on the medication so long for the symptoms to come back? (The pH probe showed minimal reflux)

Can a three year old outgrow reflux?

Well that turned into a not so quick question huh? Thank you for all your time.

[RISA]

Hi Scarlet,

Unfortunately yes, it is quite common for reflux to be gone, or appear to be gone, and then when there is an illness or something else that flares it, things can get really bad again. You may find there were a few different things that made it seem so much worse as well. Some of these other things that often flare reflux are teething, vaccinations, a change in weather, a change in routine, and even being overtired. At his age, in can be a combination of these things too.

I don't know if it helps, but it is even common for our refluxers to appear to do quite well off medication, but their signs may have changed. You can think that reflux is gone because of that, but in reality, the signs may have changed so that the ones you are looking for aren't there.
And when time goes on, and/or something happens like being sick, it can seem to come back with a vengeance.

It doesn't mean he won't ever come off medications again. You may find he only needs medication for periods of time, and then he may be okay (especially as he was doing okay for a while off medication).

Other times, it may be better they stay on medication, which may also be okay. It may be something that takes a while to get used to, but if it helps them feel better, that's sounds good to me too!!

AT his age, it is quite possibly not likely he will grow out of reflux (our paed gastro told us that it was high unlikely but not impossible), but it may be that he will only need medications intermittently. I'm sure it was a shock when you needed to use medication again, but you are doing a great job, and your son is feeling better so you should be proud.

HTH

Glenda

[scarlet]

Thank you for your detailed and helpful posts We have just switched Parker from losec twice a day to three times a day, and the change in the last few days I don't regret the decision to go back on medication. He has been so good.

It is dissappointing after he did so well, I know it was a long shot that it could just dissappear after being there so bad and for so long, and it confused me even more than before LOL

I am happy that he is on the meds now and doing well and I can see the difference clearly, and I think over summer we will try again and see, if he is still the same the GI will retest and go from there.

Thanks for all your help.

[RISA]

Hi,
I totally agree- the bottom line is that he is feeling much better, but it is still hard to accept that he has to take medication.

I think most parents do go through having to come to terms with that, especially if they have had a period of time off medications- it's quite disheartening (/devastating) to come to terms with the fact that not only is reflux still a factor, but that its bad enough to warrant medication again.

I'm glad you're doing okay now, and that he is doing as well as he is. Remember that it isn't your fault that he has reflux- you aren't doing anything wrong; you are simply doing the best job you can to help him feel more comfortable. Well done, and thanks for letting me know what's going on.

Glenda
PS re the pH probe, I don't think they are always 100% accurate, and remember that they only measure acid reflux, not non acid reflux. If they reflux when they have eaten, chances are it won't register. Hope that helps