Infantreflux.org | Help - New Here

This topic has 14 replies, 1 voice, and was last updated 16 years, 11 months ago by hellbennt.

Viewing 15 posts - 1 through 15 (of 15 total)

Author

Posts
September 20, 2009 at 2:43 pm #63953

Anonymous
Inactive

My baby is 4 weeks old & has acid refluxing all the way into his nose. His pediatrician put him on Prevecid & Zantac (Prev Solutab 2 times/day & Zantac 3 times/day). She also wants me to thicken his breastmilk with rice cereal & have him sleep on a wedge. We cannot get him to sleep longer than 45 min. at a time on the wedge & I am at my wit’s end.

She said if we don’t get the acid under control he will end up with sinus infections. Does anyone know anything about this?

The medicine doesn’t really seem to be helping. We have been on it 4 days. Any help at all would be very much appreciated.

Thanks,

Jennifer

September 20, 2009 at 6:17 pm #63954

Anonymous
Inactive

Hi Jennifer! What is the exact dosage of prevacid(how many mg’s total a day)? As far as the zantac in addition to prevacid…it’s okay as long as you are spacing the zantac and prevacid 4 hrs apart. Someone correct me if I’m wrong, but I thought that rice cereal couldn’t be mixed w/breastmilk.

Yes, sinus infections in addition to ear infections, etc can occur due to reflux issues.

Usually it(prevacid) takes a good 2 weeks to get into their systems in order to see improvement. If you haven’t had a chance, take a peek at the Groupie Intro it has a lot of valuable info. Also, marci-kids.com is a great site that talks about PPIs and proper dosage due to babies fast metabolisms.

How are his stools? Normal BF poops? Or are they stringy, mucousy? If so, this may be a sign of intolerance(MSPI). He could be reacting to something in your diet. There is another great link on here TED which discusses diet for BF babies w/MSPI. Hopefully I’ve remembered everything I wanted to mention. :)lol WELCOME!

valentine4mommy2009-09-20 18:18:26

September 20, 2009 at 7:23 pm #63958

hellbennt
Keymaster

hi & welcome!

you’ve found a great place!

your doctor sounds very old fashioned?

I ask this because you cannot mix cereal & breastmilk bcse the breastmilk contains enzymes (amalyse) that will break down the cereal…

you most likely don’t have to thicken- thickening is ‘controversial’ and can be cause for debate; there are those who swear it helped their babies…also, there are ‘particular’ cases when thickening is called for: 1) to add calories if baby is vomitting & weight gain is an issue. If this is the case, then you’d see a nutritionist/dietician and most likely find other ways to add extra calories 2) to help prevent aspiration- this is discovered by an actual test called a Swallow Study where the baby is ‘studied’ while drinking and they watch how (the mechanics) the baby swallows and look to see if any liquid is getting into the lungs (aspiration) while baby drinks. if aspiration is the case, then there are actual thickening agents that are used that are prescribed in exact consistancies (ex: ‘honey’ or ‘nectar’ consistancies)

all this being said, the key to all of this is RESEARCH and, of course, support!

here’s a conversion chart to check how many kilos your lo (loved one/little one) is: conversion chart: http://www.sfca.co.uk/match/kilolbs.htm.

having your baby’s weight in kilos will help you check your baby’s doses

http://www.marci-kids.com is at the FOREFRONT of research of PPI (meds like prevacid, prilosec, nexium) use and dosing in infants/todders. You might want to start there to see if PPI dose is ‘proper’

then, hop back here to learn HOW to get that proper dose, if need be, and what FORM of PPI and HOW to administer…

Prevacid 101(last post on the page): https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=1936&PN=0&TPN=1

unfortunately, the majority of drs & pharmacists don’t know…babies metabolisms’ are much faster than adults, so the drugs work differently with them…

you can slo check the zantac dose:

Zantac dosing- my/other’s question (has axid & pepcid dose, too):

https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=8288&PN=1

after medication, you might then want to look at diet…

I have a LOT MORE TO SAY! and most of it is here:

Groupie Intro: https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=853

there is even a link from Groupie Intro for finding a dr near you.

(Anyone else reading this who has not posted their dr on that link: PLEASE do, as it helps others! the good AND the bad…thanks!!)

Groupie Intro is looong, but PLEASE read/skim/scroll through it & refer back to it, as it TRULY will help you!

so glad you found us!

~laura

ps: when you get a moment, please go to the upper right-hand corner of this screen and click on ‘settings’ and from there you can edit your signature and let us know how old baby is, what formula or breastfeeding, MSPI or not, what meds and what doses and form of meds and how you’re administering-thanks!

hellbennt2009-09-20 19:59:19

September 20, 2009 at 8:07 pm #63959

Anonymous
Inactive

Prevacid is 15 mg solutab – break in half & give morning & night. Can I give him any more?

We had allergy testing, that was all fine. His poop is normal.

Jennifer

September 20, 2009 at 8:14 pm #63961

hellbennt
Keymaster

allergy testing at this age is not reliable…but if poop is ‘normal’ mustardy/seedy breastfed baby poop, then that’s a good sign!

you are lucky to get such a good dose of prevacid!

make sure you’re giving on an empty stomach, followed by a ‘meal’ 30 minutes later

to administer the solutab you can either ‘just’ hold it alongside the inside of the cheek as it dissolves or mix the solutab w/ just enough water so that you can administer it- you can ‘play’ with what works best for you/your baby

September 20, 2009 at 9:47 pm #63962

Anonymous
Inactive

Hi and Welcome,

Amber is right about the rice cereal not working with breast milk, there are enzymes in the breast milk that will not allow it to be thickened with rice cereal and well the cereal can be really hard on their tummies, esp at this young and age. I would say that based on age your dose of prevacid is probably good. How are you giving it? Do you break up the tablet and then mix with water? Or are you dissolving the whole tablet and then giving 1/2 in the a.m and the other 1/2 in the pm? The medicine it light sensitive so make sure to keep it covered in a dark place. Also once dissolved it is only effective for I believe 15 min, so you need to dissolve only right before you give. HTH.

September 20, 2009 at 10:09 pm #63965

Anonymous
Inactive

Thanks so much! What about the wedge she wants him to sleep on?

Also, should i switch to formula? He gets frantic after eating…is it my milk?

September 20, 2009 at 10:12 pm #63966

Anonymous
Inactive

Does the previcid take 14 days to work? Any point in giving both zantac & previcid? Or should i just switch to only previcid?

September 21, 2009 at 2:38 pm #63968

Anonymous
Inactive

A sleep wedge is a good idea, even for nonrefluxers. So, I’d give it a shot.

It’s up to you, obviously, but I’d stick w/BF if you can. If his stools are fine then he shouldn’t be reacting to anything in your BM. And if he does start to show signs of intolerance, then you can always do TED and make your milk like an elemental formula(elecare, neocate, etc).

Yes, prevacid does take up to 14 days to work. I’d continue to give the zantac in the meantime(spaced 4hrs apart). So, prevacid AM, then zantac 4 hrs later, then prevacid PM, then zantac 4hrs later…Once the prevacid has had time to kick in, you can then take out the zantac if you wish or keep doing what you’re doing w/both. What ever works! As far as upping the prevacid dose…marci-kids.com has a dosage calculator based on your LOs weight, age, and medication that will tell you what the max dosage would be for him. I’d check that out! Also, like Beth mentioned, don’t forget that the other half of the pill needs to be stored in a cool, dark place until used. I use to wrap it up in aluminum foil.

Also, like Laura mentioned…Allergy testing at this age is NOT AT ALL accurate. Allergy testing is best done b/t ages 18-36 months. RAST(blood) tests are completely unreliable at any age. I’d do skin prick or patch once he’s of age IF he has any intolerance/allergy issues.

HTH!

September 21, 2009 at 3:20 pm #63970

Anonymous
Inactive

Thank you so much to all of you for the help. I really appreciate knowing I’m not alone.

The wedge is one of those with the harness attached that he hangs from. He absolutely hates it. We stuck with using it for 48 hours – he didn’t ever sleep longer than 15 min. It is a 45 degree angle. Does anyone know of a better alternative to this one?

I’ll try spacing the Zantac & Prevecid…I so hope the Prevecid will work eventually – I’m losing my sanity!

Jennifer

September 21, 2009 at 6:17 pm #63972

Anonymous
Inactive

You definitely are not alone!

Is it the tucker wedge? We tried the AR pillow w/little luck. I think my DD was too old when we tried introducing it. So, I had to rig something up and luckily it worked. 🙂 BUT, if I ever have another refluxer I would try the nap nanny. It’s a product that I came across AFTER my DD no longer needed a wedge(of course). lol So, maybe take a peek at the link and see if it may be right for your LO.

http://www.napnanny.com/the_napnanny.html

The zantac can’t be given along w/prevacid b/c it causes it ineffective. So, if you’re not able to time it right, then I’d skip the zantac dose and go for the prevacid. What’s your DS’s weight? Maybe there is room for increase in dosage if things don’t work at first. Hang in there!

September 21, 2009 at 6:57 pm #63973

Anonymous
Inactive

He is almost 5 weeks & weighs between 11-12 lbs. According to the merci site – he can have 3 doses of Previcid a day. Is that right?

It isn’t the Tucker wedge – it’s one from a medical supply store – Pediamed or something like that.

September 22, 2009 at 2:28 pm #63985

Anonymous
Inactive

Yeah, I did the calc’s too. It says for a total of 21-27mg/day. So, if necessary there is room for increase. Most Peds aren’t fond of this, but marci-kids is at the forefront of PPI research in infants. Higher doses are necessary due to fast infant metabolisms.

As far as upping the zantac in the meantime here is how you do those calculations…

previously posted by LAURA: max zantac dose by weight is 10mgs per kilo

weight in kilos x 10 = mgs total of zantac for the day

your bottle should read 15mgs/mL

so mgs total of zantac for the day divided by 15 = mLs total a day of zantac, divided into 2 doses

the doses can be ‘uneven’ meaning you can split it up to give a higher portion at night…

HTH!

September 22, 2009 at 5:39 pm #63996

Anonymous
Inactive

How do I decide how much to give him & when? Also, when to give Previcid & when to give Zantac?

Thanks so much!

September 22, 2009 at 6:43 pm #63998

hellbennt
Keymaster

I’ll start evening/night bcse I’m guessing that’s when reflux is at it’s worst.

I would give prevacid at night/evening for sure, making sure to give on empty stomach, followed by a ‘meal’ 30 minutes later.

this is hard w/ breastfed babies, but you can always try nursing first and then 2hrs later (I think stomach is ’empty’ by then?) give 1/2 the solutab and then nurse again 30 minutes after that…I say try nursing first, because I happen to believe in nursing on demand…

so I would give prevacid for sure in the evening/night and, if baby is uncomfy about 3hrs after that dose, you can then give the zantac. zantac can be given anytime; it doesn’t have to be on an empty stomach. but it does need to be spaced about 4 hrs (3hrs should be fine) from the prevacid

then I’d give prevacid again in the a.m. and after that dose wait 3 or 4 hrs for the zantac

zantac calculation:

12lbs = 5.5kilos

so 5.5 x 10 = 55mgs

that’s 55mgs total of zantac for the day

your bottle should read 15mgs/ml

this means that for every ml of liquid you give of zantac, it contains 15mgs of the medicine

so 55 divided by 15 = 3.7mls total for the day of zantac

you can divide this into ‘uneven’ doses

you might have to experiment with how the doses work, like a bigger dose mid-morning or a bigger dose in the middle of the night, etc.

examples:

2mls + 1.7mls

2.2mls + 1.5mls

1ml + 2.7mls

2.5mls + 1.2mls

etc etc

ps: when you get a moment, please go to the upper right-hand corner of this screen and click on ‘settings’ and from there you can edit your signature and let us know how old baby is, what formula or breastfeeding, MSPI or not, what meds and what doses and form of meds and how you’re administering-thanks!

hellbennt2009-09-22 18:49:31
Author

Posts

Viewing 15 posts - 1 through 15 (of 15 total)

The forum ‘HELP!!!’ is closed to new topics and replies.

Help – New Here