the good and bad of motility drugs?

[Anonymous]

I have a feeling one or both boys have problems emptying their stomachs (Jack’s didn’t on his upper GI). If the doctor mentions this, what are your opinions on motility drugs? I am seeing a lot of negative experiences and awful side effects in posts on this site. My boys seem very sensitive to medicines – they always get the side effects. Do you think this is a condition that may work itself out with time?

[Anonymous]

My dd was diagnosed with GERD & delayed gastric emptying at 4 weeks old. She will be 3 yr old in November. She still has her reflux lthough it is very under control with meds. But, she outgrew her DGE by around 10 months old & no longer needed to take meds for it. She actually did better on motility meds than off them. She took Reglan. Many babies are given motility drugs when they may not really need them & those are usually the ones that have such a hard time with them.

[Anonymous]

Reglan can have some very serious neurological side effects, but some babies take it with no problem. I’d be afraid to try it personally.

Some docs prescribe an antibiotic (I can’t remember which one, but I’m sure someone here knows) that also works to empty the stomach.

Despite Myles’ DGE, he really did quite well once his Prevacid dose was upped to the adequate level. I knew he still had a problem with DGE because he would throw up something he ate hours ago, and his appetite was pretty small, but he ate enough to gain weight normally. His doctor doesn’t like to treat DGE unless it is severe enough to prevent normal weight gain.

[Anonymous]

there are other motility drug options out there besides reglan.
personally i would try to avoid reglan. ask your doc about the other
meds.

[Anonymous]

Hailey could barf up something that she ate almost 12 hours before, she was constantly constipated, refluxed all the time, had no appetite and she still didn’t have DGE, as far as we know. Many people I’ve come across have cited the same symptoms, and after the gastric emptying scan, they were surprised to see that things were within the normal range. Hailey’s emptying was only measured by UGI due to her feeding aversion, so not entirely accurate. I’m not sure how accurate a UGI is for DGE as apposed to a gastric emptying test, all I know is that we were told that it wasn’t the gold standard because they might not eat enough to cause the stomach to empty properly. I don’t know if that’s true or not.

Anyhow, I’ve heard of quite a few people having success with gastric emptying meds to treat DGE. We tried domperidone without luck. I personally would read up on your options before talking to the doc so that you can make the most educated choice and weigh the potential benefits vs. the potential side effects. Some meds are reglan, erythromycin, and bethanacol. I believe those are the main ones used in the US for DGE. Good luck.

s&h’s mum2006-8-23 15:50:39

[Anonymous]

Thanks Lori, I couldn’t remember the names of any of those drugs.

[Author]

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