Help! Reflux, hernia, and breathing

[Anonymous]

Hi!

I have a 10 week old baby and I’m very concerned about his breathing. He was born with a broken nose so we’ve been to the ENT. She diagnosed reflux and put him on Zantac.

We waited 6 weeks, met with her again and my concerns about his breathing did not go away. When he is awake he has a raspy breathing that sounds like its coming from his nose or throat. He kinda sounds like he needs to clear his throat. My main concern is how fast he breaths. When he is awake he can breathe anywhere from 50-70 times a minute. When he is sleeping, he breaths completely normal and no noises and breathes about 41 times a minute. Because of my concern, she sent us for a GI track test and an X-ray to see his airway and to a GI doctor.

The test results showed his swallow was fine but that he has reflux and a sliding hatial hernia. The GI doctor didn’t seem to concerned and said we’d watch his breathing and weight. If his breathing gets worse, we’d have to talk surgery on the hernia.

Well it’s been about 2.5 weeks and I feel like his breathing is getting worse. Not the rate or sound but the frequency. It used to be the way I described just after he ate. Now it feels as though its constantly while he is awake.

My husband is in the military so he isn’t around and my mom thinks I worry to much and I don’t really have mom friends so I’m kinda alone and freaking out.

Has anyone had experience with the reflux, breathing issues I described and hernia? If so, can you share your story with me?

Thank you!

[Anonymous]

Hi and welcome to this forum! I am so sorry that your little one is struggling so much! I sure don’t blame you for being concerned about his breathing.

I do not have any experience with the hernia part but I am sure that there has been or is moms on here that have. I would recommend searching the site about it. On the top right hand corner of this page there is a search button. You could look up reflux and hiatal hernia. And search back 6 months and earlier.

Does he seem to be in in pain or throwing up a lot. Or is it just the breathing that is bad? Is the fast raspy breathing from the hernia or the reflux or maybe both?

My kids’s reflux was helped a lot by them taking probiotics and enzymes. I don’t know a lot about hernias but one place I read that the hernia itself isn’t normally what caused pain but if there is pain, it usually from the esophagus being irritated. So, if your child is experiencing pain, probiotics would most likely help lessen the pain, as they will coat the esophagus and protect it from acid that is irritating.

If your child has any problems with gas, or digesting food properly, he might benefit from taking digestive enzymes. As they are what is needed to help properly break down food.

Some babies have a hard time producing enough enzymes and probiotics.

But if your little one is not experiencing digestive problems or pain, then I do not know if probiotics and enzymes could help any or not.

Hopefully another mom will come on here soon that can help you out more than I about the hernia.

And hopefully you can soon find something to help your little one! It can be SO stressful and scary when you don’t know what’s wrong or what to do with your child! (((HUG)))

[hellbennt]

hang in there!

there HAVE been babies on here w/ all of the issues you write about!

you have found an amazing place to research all you can so that you are armed w/ knowledge so that you can be the best advocate for your baby!

the breathing issue may or may not be laryngomalacia
https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=4884

or tracheomalacia
https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=4881

read and see if the links help…

as for the hiatal hernia:
on the upper right-hand corner of the screen is the search button
click on it and search for hiatal hernia
and make sure to choose 6 months and OLDER so that you can learn from people who used to post here but don’t anymore because their babies are better/grown, etc

Also:
https://www.infantreflux.org/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=853
this link is called Groupie Intro. It’s looong! But, it WILL help you!

Hang in there!

hellbennt2012-12-24 16:49:45

[Anonymous]

my daughter had a hiatal hernia, but her’s caused such severe reflux she required a fundo when she was just shy of 10 months old. i don’t know what rapid breathing while awake would have to do with a hiatal hernia.

My daughter developed obstructive sleep apnea quite a few months after her fundo—but her breathing was horrible when she fell asleep–she sounded like she was struggling to breath.

I have a hiatal hernia that I developed when I carried my twins over 22 years ago. I have severe reflux and now i have eosinophilic esophagitis–my GI thinks it may be secondary to the reflux. I guess a little time on medication will tell–i also had food allergy testing done and discovered i am allergic to egg whites, which can cause eos cells.

Have you taken your child to a GI yet? Neither my daughter nor i had rapid breathing from the hiatal hernias.

[hellbennt]

any updates?

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