Is Colic Related to Acid Reflux?
"My experience with [antacids] has shown that it may help reduce the symptoms for a short time, but in two or three days it seems to get worse again."
Here is my opinion as to what is happening in a colicy baby. Spitting up is one of the most common symptoms of colic. What usually happens as a result of of spit up or vomiting, is that parents take their baby to the pediatrician, who will examine the baby, and in most cases, not find any obvious causes for the spit up. No fever, no ear infections, heart and lung sounds are clear, no sinus infections, and no skin rash. The baby appears to be healthy. The doctor will send them home reassuring them that the baby is healthy, but in actuality, they usually have a distended abdomen and many times will illicit other symptoms common to colic. The doctor will usually tell the patient that spitting up, to some degree, is normal but to burp them more often, and try not to overfeed. The parents are often sent home with a baby diagnosed with colic after hearing the doctor explain that colic is very common and that it will go away on its own in three months or less.
The parent takes the child home and more often than not, the problems will continue. The parents tend to remain very worried about their baby and will therefore continue to take the baby back to the pediatrician. Since there are no medications for the baby to take other than gas drops, colic calm, simethocone drops, etc., one of the aforementioned products is typically prescribed and they are sent home, once again, reassured that the colic will go away in average of three months or less. These drops, however, have been clinically proven to be ineffective and, in many cases, seem to make the problem worse, occasionally increasing severity of the symptoms. The parent may return to the pediatrician in tears, more forcibly pushing the doctor to find out what is seriously wrong with their baby.
The parents are scared, sleep deprived, and losing faith in their doctor because their baby isn't progressing. The parents search the web, get on FaceBook asking for advice, and many times seek the advice of another pediatrician, frantically hoping to find a way to get their baby well. Often times, the new doctor believes the baby has acid reflux and will prescribe Zantac, Prilosec, Tegement, or some other antacid.
My experience with this has shown that it may help reduce the symptoms for a short time, but in two or three days it seems to get worse again. All the literature I have read indicates that acid reflux medicine will not stop the spitting up or the vomiting. What they say is that it is supposed to decrease the drainage to the esophagus and stomach with the intent of preventing more serious problems in the future. i have seen that antacid medications typically will not improve or change the colic symptoms.
How long are babies kept on this medication? If the results do not indicate any improvement in three or four weeks, they usually recommend stopping. Many times they continue on because they don't know what else to do. At this time the pediatrician will usually recommend a referral to a pediatrician gastroenterologist for further examination and tests. After this has been done, the diagnosis is the same. The baby has colic, the baby is healthy, and in three months the colic will go away.
Once in a while, not very frequently, the baby may show signs of acid reflux, which is generally caused by an esophageal hiatal hernia. If this is the finding, appropriate medications or surgery will be recommended, however, this does not occur frequently and the parents are usually just sent home with instructions on conservative care until the baby hopefully outgrows the symptoms. Colic and acid reflux are both very frustrating conditions for everyone, including the baby, the parents and the doctors.
The parent takes the child home and more often than not, the problems will continue. The parents tend to remain very worried about their baby and will therefore continue to take the baby back to the pediatrician. Since there are no medications for the baby to take other than gas drops, colic calm, simethocone drops, etc., one of the aforementioned products is typically prescribed and they are sent home, once again, reassured that the colic will go away in average of three months or less. These drops, however, have been clinically proven to be ineffective and, in many cases, seem to make the problem worse, occasionally increasing severity of the symptoms. The parent may return to the pediatrician in tears, more forcibly pushing the doctor to find out what is seriously wrong with their baby.
The parents are scared, sleep deprived, and losing faith in their doctor because their baby isn't progressing. The parents search the web, get on FaceBook asking for advice, and many times seek the advice of another pediatrician, frantically hoping to find a way to get their baby well. Often times, the new doctor believes the baby has acid reflux and will prescribe Zantac, Prilosec, Tegement, or some other antacid.
My experience with this has shown that it may help reduce the symptoms for a short time, but in two or three days it seems to get worse again. All the literature I have read indicates that acid reflux medicine will not stop the spitting up or the vomiting. What they say is that it is supposed to decrease the drainage to the esophagus and stomach with the intent of preventing more serious problems in the future. i have seen that antacid medications typically will not improve or change the colic symptoms.
How long are babies kept on this medication? If the results do not indicate any improvement in three or four weeks, they usually recommend stopping. Many times they continue on because they don't know what else to do. At this time the pediatrician will usually recommend a referral to a pediatrician gastroenterologist for further examination and tests. After this has been done, the diagnosis is the same. The baby has colic, the baby is healthy, and in three months the colic will go away.
Once in a while, not very frequently, the baby may show signs of acid reflux, which is generally caused by an esophageal hiatal hernia. If this is the finding, appropriate medications or surgery will be recommended, however, this does not occur frequently and the parents are usually just sent home with instructions on conservative care until the baby hopefully outgrows the symptoms. Colic and acid reflux are both very frustrating conditions for everyone, including the baby, the parents and the doctors.
