10 Paths To Identify Heartburn In Kids
Saturday, March 6th, 2010Acid reflux disease or GERD is a condition where the contents of the gut enter into the esophagus and cause painful symptoms in the upper chest area.
Newborns typically spit up but may not really have acid reflux. Older youngsters may not spit up at all but could have more sophisticated indications of acid reflux. These are called silent symptoms and include :
1. Weight management
2. Trouble sleeping
3. Bad temper
4. Arching the back while feeding
5. Trouble swallowing
6. Discomfort in the stomach or chest.
7. Hoarseness in the voice
8. Frequent sore throat
9. A persistent cough
10. A failure to thrive
It appears that acid reflux occurs more frequently in kids born prematurely. There is no tie to any categorical time of prematurity. Premature children have not had an opportunity to develop all of their systems absolutely and thus have a range of different Problems, including acid reflux.
So the most important thing to realize when discussing pediatric acid reflux is that not all kids who puke or spit up have acid reflux and not all children with acid reflux barf or spit up.
There just is no dead on method of telling without the advice of a trained pediatrician. Since acid reflux in kids may be extremely sophisticated, the folks must arm themselves with what to look for and know what to do.
If you’re undecided if your kid has acid reflux, try keeping a diary of foods eaten and how frequently the child spits up or barfs. Also track symptoms the same way and pass this information along to your doctor. He / she will be able to make the correct call on treatment for your child.
In addition to the silent symptoms above, more significant symptoms are persistent complaints of heartburn, burning in the chest area or difficulty sleeping flat on the back.
Once you know what to go looking for, you can take your child to a pediatric gastroenterologist for evaluation. Take your diary with you and discuss everything with your GP.
There are many treatments for acid reflux and your physician will know what to prescribe. I wouldn’t suggest using over the counter drugs like Nexium, Zantac seventy five or Prilosec in youngsters since these were originally developed for adults with the condition and may be too robust for youngsters.
When it comes to acid reflux in kids, there truly are too many variables to think about, so please see your physician in all cases.
You can also find more info on Treatment of acid reflux in children here. Chronic heartburn treatment is a comprehensive resource to help individuals with acid reflux.