Failure to Thrive in 1 year old

[shopsy]

Hi there,

We have a one year old who has plummeted from the 75th percentile to below the 1st percentile.  She currently weighs 16 pounds and has not gained any weight in the past 6 months.  She seems to have delayed gross motor milestones and hypotonia.  She has seen neurologists (she has clear EEG) and we are waiting on MRI and evoked potential.  She was diagnosed with GERD at 7 weeks of age and has been taking prevacid.  A GI recently suggested that she has a milk protein allergy.  

She has had severe constipation since she was about 4 months of age (BM once a month, in pain).  We have a family history of hypothyroidism and I am wondering if there is any way her issues could in fact be related to thyroid (although she was screened at birth).

Thanks!


This discussion is related to Failure to Thrive.

[mamawith2girls]

Hi,

Having a child who is labelled failure to thrive is very worrisome. I know from personal experience. My infant daughter was 90% at birth and by 6 months was off the chart. She had reflux and feeding difficulty. Does your little one have feeding difficulty associated with the reflux? Does she vomit? There is A LOT that needs to be ruled out and A LOT of things to manage as far as nutrition.

As for her thyroid, my best guess is that they've likely ruled that out with a simple blood test. That's all we have ever had done in terms of thyroid testing. They usually do it in the first check along with cbc and stuff.

Has she had a FULL FTT workup? I imagine so if she is already being seen by GI.....has she been tested for Cystic Fibrosis?

Has the GI switched her to a hypoallergenic formula? Are you concentrating her formula? Is she seeing a nutritionist?

There are a bazillion things that can cause FTT, but with the constipation and reflux (which is totally chicken and egg type deal), I'd say GI is the best place for her, and you need a really good nutritionist.

Don't let them scare you though....some babies who are born big take a big drop in the first year if they are meant to be small in the first place. I like to think of it as "I baked her real good".....haha.....So if you have a baby that was meant to be small, who also has a rough start.....then what you get is a really big drop and then it will eventually level out to the natural curve.

I won't lie, with the reflux and weight issues, as well as the delays, you have a long road ahead and a lot to worry about and wait on, so please get as much support as you can. Motherhood is hard enough, without having to worry about the health of your little one. The best thing you can do is take care of yourself......and I assure you, my little ftt baby, who is now 4, is very bright and mostly healthy, and weighs a whopping 29lbs :)

Good luck!

OH, and keep an eye on her height....Height is actually a better predictor of whether her growth is being negatively impacted by a physiological problem.

[margypops]

I agree with melipops it is a case of waiting to see what the tests and doctors have to say, the waiting part is so hard isnt it , what is her diet like could you give us an idea of what she eats ?

[melipops]

Hi, This is so hard for you. You just need to keep going to thiose appointments and sort this out one thing at a time. I understand we are having a similar problem and unfortunately no answers so far. We are inverstigating Caeliacs and milk allergies at the moment. Thyroid could also be a problem. Get blood tests done and see what they say. Good luck