Infant Reflux and Zantac Dose

My son had the same thing his entire bottle would come right back at me. I tried this natural stuff I put a 1/2 scoop right in his bottle or sippy cup called Immune 26. or I 26 powder once a day. I even had my Docter check it out first. He orded some too. After the second day he stopped throwing up. and was alot happier. He has out grown it now but he likes it and asks me for a shake (i 26 complete support)in the morning so the whole family takes it occationally. It even helps me with heartburn. www.legacyforlife.com or 1-800-557-8477 I hope it helps!!!

Hi C.,
My son has been struggling with reflux since he was born, he is 9 months now. We started him on Zantac when he was about 4 months old, 1.5ml twice a day. It seemed to help at first and then it didn't make much of a difference. We switched him to Prevacid at 6 months old. However, Prevacid didn't help at all and made him projectile vomit so we decided to completely stop giving him any medication at that point. He has always struggled with constipation issues, probably because he is on formula. I noticed that if I give him about 3-4 oz of prune juice a day (mixed with formula) his constipation goes away and most of his reflux issues as well. So my thoughts, in our case anyway, are that his problem wasn't so much reflux as contipation pushing his stomach contents back up. As long as he poops ok, his reflux is minimal if not completely gone. In case your child doesn't have constipation problems, I would definitely try a diferent pediatrician because your current one doesn't sound very helpful.
Good luck,
L.

Hi C.,

I agree on a couple of points from others' responses.

1. Your doctor should listen and do more.
2. Perhaps you should look to natural methods.
3. If he has constipation issues or hard stools, obviously his digestive/elimination isn't working correctly.

Possible helps would be digestive enzymes (available in fresh fruits and vegetables, and possibly for babies in another form). Also, if he's been on antibiotics, you may consider probiotics for him. Most adults that I work with (I work in the natural health field) who have come in with acid reflux, once they add those two things (enzymes and probiotics), notice amazing results.

Also, being a reflexologist, I would work on his little feet and massage them in the arch area of his foot (you can find a chart), as well as the esophageal area - doesn't need to be hard, just often for him. I would also massage his tummy area (going in a clockwise direction). That could get things 'flowing' better.

Hope things get better,

B. C., CR, SCCI, BCRS, LSH, EFT-CC
Certified Baby Massage Instructor
Certified Reflexologist
Board Certified Raindrop Specialist
Natural Health Coach

Hey C.,
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You are the one that has the last word. You know him better than anyone else. He is just another patient to your DR.
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Have you considered any alternative therapies (other than Western Medicine)? My daughter was diagnosed with reflux when she was 3 weeks old and given Zantac. A few weeks later I brought her to a cranio-sacral massage therapist who helped her body let go of any kinks left over from birth. The craniosacral work helped waaaay more than the Zantac, which I discontinued after 3 weeks.
Best of luck.

I recommend calling the pharmacist to ask about dosing. The pharmacist has dosing information.

I did this with my daughter once (with medicine for allergies) when the doctor was not available.

My son had reflux and took Mylanta several times a day for over a year. I was surprised babies could take Mylanta!

I think your doctor should be listening to you more. I would get another opinion at least. As a mother, you are really in tune to your child and might be better able to tell whether something is not working than the doc is. My daughter was on Zantac till age 2 - they don't all outgrow it at age 1!

Hi C.. Our son is almost 3mos, and he is on .8ml of zantac 3x a day, along with a dose of prevacid once a day. He started with zantac 2x a day, but it didn't give him constant relief, so we spread out the doses to 3x a day. Our ped has been GREAT about increasing the dose if I call and tell him that Adam is exhibiting signs that the reflux is getting bad again... I just go weigh him at the hospital, and call the Dr so he can adjust the dose. You would have to have a much higher dose for a 27lb baby. Our son is over 14lbs now, and we are hoping to self wean him from the meds as he gets bigger.
I would definitely consult your Dr again or get a second opinion. Our Dr was great from the get-go with the reflux issues, but it might also be b/c I work in the NICU and knew the signs/symptoms. I go to Camino Med Group.
Good luck and let me know what happens!

C.

Docs should be responsive. Maybe not instantaneously, for non life threatening questions, but definitely within a couple of days!! If you can get him to send you to pediatric gastroenterology, go. If not, it may be time to shop for another pediatrician/family practitioner. This is a HUGE underdose for a toddler who is still symptomatic with reflux.

S. (who masquarades as an RN when she's not being a mommy)

Hi C.,
I can completely relate to your situation. I recommend getting another doctor opinion, and if possible with a GI pediatric specialist. It took our GI doctor to get my daughters reflux under control. Reglan and prevacid did not work for her. She is on .8 ml Zantac twice a day (17 lbs) and Zantac 20 mg twice a day. She is now 21 months (18 months corrected) and has not refluxed in two months. Don't be afraid to pursue medical treatment for you son. Good luck.

I am reluctant to see any child have to take medication. Have you tried taking him to see a chiropractor? Sometimes our nervous systems just have to be realigned for a lot of problems to go away. This is safe and effective if you have a doctor who knows what he/she is doing. My kids have gone to Dr. Cathy at Active Family Chiropractic in Truckee for years and are very healthy. I don't treat them with medicine, the adjustments and prayer seem to work very well. Call her and she might be able to refer you to someone in your area. ###-###-####.
Also monitoring what you are eating if you are nursing could help. Try cutting out different things from your diet one at a time and see if that helps.
Good luck!

I know this is so frustrating. It is so hard to see your baby suffer. My son gets 1/2ml twice a day and he is 23 lbs. I have also been giving him infant probiotics and that seems to be helping with spit up and digestion. Good Luck.

my 20 DAY old infant was taking .5 ml 3 times a day of Zantac after being diagnosed with severe reflux. Her reflux was so bad it caused her to hold her breath when it came up ... enough to where she stopped breathing at 16 days old.

Now I'm not saying it's for everyone, but I actually noticed a decrease in episodes after switching to an all formula diet and actually going over to Prevacid Solutabs (1/4 a tab twice a day).

I know a 18 month old shouldn't be reliant on formula/breast milk, but maybe it's a diet & medication combination???
Has your son started any new foods?
Maybe real food and Zantac doesn't work for him?

Just some things to think about.

A.

(PS maybe switching doctor's to one who listens to you may help too!)

Hi C.,

All I can say is that there must be an underlying reason and your dr is remiss in not looking into it. Best guess would be a food allergy or intolerance, and seeing a naturopath or doing an elimination diet might help get to the bottom of it. Best of luck to you.

Hi C.,
as a health care provider myself, it is my opinion that an unresponsive medical professional is not someone to stay with.

While many children will have "out grown" reflux by 18 months others have not. Certainly as children grow their medications need to be adjusted. Even adults should have a review of medications regularly and adjustments made if necessary.

If your son has distress from reflux or other causes he needs to have an evaluation and you should be involved in designing an appropriate treatment plan. Your son's physician should provide you with information about the problem, probable contributing factors, and alternate approaches to treatment. When you have sufficient information and your questions answered then you can make a descision regarding treatment plan. The physician may make a recommendation to help you decide, but altimately it is up to you (if you wish to follow a plan they don't agree with you may need to find an alternative physician who will support your decision and provide necessary prescriptions and referals if needed). There should also be a clear understanding of when the next re-evaluation will be and how that will be conducted (it may just be you confirming the plan is working and then follow up at next regularly scheduled development and health check).

Painful reflux can have long lasting effects including sensitization of the throat and possible damage to the throat (such as varicies or errosion), it should not be ignored. Parents should not be ignored when they are concerned about their children. Please don't stick with a doc who is providing the service your family needs.

K. H.

First, if your pediatrician seems to be unresponsive to your requests for further evaluation or treatment CHANGE pediatricians. I had to change pediatricians 3 times before I finally found one whe believed in working in a partnership with the parents and who was willing to acknowledge that she needed to be referred to a specialist. Ask friends who they see for their kids and ask them how responsive they are to parent input/requests. Second - check with your insurance to see if you can self refer to a specialist, preferably to a pedi-gastrointeralogist and possibly a allergist for possible food allergies that may be causeing his problem. In the mean time you may ask your pediatrician to add Reglan to his regimen... Reglan works by increasing GI motility meaning what your son eats moves through the stomach and intestines faster so it doesn't come back up as fast. Good luck.