Could it be CF?

[paisleypoet]

My daughter is going for a sweat test in a couple of weeks and I just was wondering how likely it is that she has CF. When she was 2 weeks, she had some problems with anal stenosis that was causing blockage, but no meconium ileum at birth. She was born at 7 lb. 8 oz, the 25th percentile. Then around 8 months old she had dropped off to the third percentile. She then developed several food allergies (wheat, dairy, peanut, oats and egg) and has always had really bad eczema. The main problem is her digestion...her bowel movements are frequently runny or pasty and very smelly, with undigested food in it. She is also constantly hungry, and wants to eat ALL the time. They did an upper endoscopy, she was negative for celiac disease, and everything else looked good. They also checked her poop for organisms, and it was fine. She has never had a respiratory infection, and her skin does not taste salty. However, she does have chronic ear infections. Can she still have CF? At 16 months, she barely weighs 19 pounds, but she seems healthy and happy. I am very worried. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[paisleypoet]

My daughter is going for a sweat test in a couple of weeks and I just was wondering how likely it is that she has CF. When she was 2 weeks, she had some problems with anal stenosis that was causing blockage, but no meconium ileum at birth. She was born at 7 lb. 8 oz, the 25th percentile. Then around 8 months old she had dropped off to the third percentile. She then developed several food allergies (wheat, dairy, peanut, oats and egg) and has always had really bad eczema. The main problem is her digestion...her bowel movements are frequently runny or pasty and very smelly, with undigested food in it. She is also constantly hungry, and wants to eat ALL the time. They did an upper endoscopy, she was negative for celiac disease, and everything else looked good. They also checked her poop for organisms, and it was fine. She has never had a respiratory infection, and her skin does not taste salty. However, she does have chronic ear infections. Can she still have CF? At 16 months, she barely weighs 19 pounds, but she seems healthy and happy. I am very worried. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[paisleypoet]

My daughter is going for a sweat test in a couple of weeks and I just was wondering how likely it is that she has CF. When she was 2 weeks, she had some problems with anal stenosis that was causing blockage, but no meconium ileum at birth. She was born at 7 lb. 8 oz, the 25th percentile. Then around 8 months old she had dropped off to the third percentile. She then developed several food allergies (wheat, dairy, peanut, oats and egg) and has always had really bad eczema. The main problem is her digestion...her bowel movements are frequently runny or pasty and very smelly, with undigested food in it. She is also constantly hungry, and wants to eat ALL the time. They did an upper endoscopy, she was negative for celiac disease, and everything else looked good. They also checked her poop for organisms, and it was fine. She has never had a respiratory infection, and her skin does not taste salty. However, she does have chronic ear infections. Can she still have CF? At 16 months, she barely weighs 19 pounds, but she seems healthy and happy. I am very worried. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[PACmommy]

Your daughter sounds alot like mine, excema, runy BM's and large appetite besides the resp. problems and ear infections. It really could be almost anything, CF patients share alot of symptoms with other patients. I first thought our daughter was type 1 diabetic because she was always thirsty. The only thing I can say is be patient. If it is CF, than you can move on to your next course of action. If not, than seek out other answers. Write down a history of your child, everything you can think of, and present it to your DR. It was after I did, that our DR. suggested Cf. Good luck

 

[PACmommy]

Your daughter sounds alot like mine, excema, runy BM's and large appetite besides the resp. problems and ear infections. It really could be almost anything, CF patients share alot of symptoms with other patients. I first thought our daughter was type 1 diabetic because she was always thirsty. The only thing I can say is be patient. If it is CF, than you can move on to your next course of action. If not, than seek out other answers. Write down a history of your child, everything you can think of, and present it to your DR. It was after I did, that our DR. suggested Cf. Good luck

 

[PACmommy]

Your daughter sounds alot like mine, excema, runy BM's and large appetite besides the resp. problems and ear infections. It really could be almost anything, CF patients share alot of symptoms with other patients. I first thought our daughter was type 1 diabetic because she was always thirsty. The only thing I can say is be patient. If it is CF, than you can move on to your next course of action. If not, than seek out other answers. Write down a history of your child, everything you can think of, and present it to your DR. It was after I did, that our DR. suggested Cf. Good luck

 

[ktsmom]

I seem to be in the "attack doctor" mode but I can't believe they would do an upper endoscopy, before even trying a sweat test, based on her symptoms.

The waiting is really tough; I know you are worried. Can you push the sweat test up earlier?

Our daughter also had NO respiratory infections, DID have chronic ear infections, the constant hunger, falling off the percentile charts, the BM problems you describe.

Ditto to what Rebecca says - be armed with information to help your Doc see what you see. I learned way too late that I don't "give good history" when our Doc was trying to diagnose our daughter.

Sincerely wishing the very best for you.

Dana
Mom to Katy (3, cf) and Kyra (6, no cf)

 

[ktsmom]

I seem to be in the "attack doctor" mode but I can't believe they would do an upper endoscopy, before even trying a sweat test, based on her symptoms.

The waiting is really tough; I know you are worried. Can you push the sweat test up earlier?

Our daughter also had NO respiratory infections, DID have chronic ear infections, the constant hunger, falling off the percentile charts, the BM problems you describe.

Ditto to what Rebecca says - be armed with information to help your Doc see what you see. I learned way too late that I don't "give good history" when our Doc was trying to diagnose our daughter.

Sincerely wishing the very best for you.

Dana
Mom to Katy (3, cf) and Kyra (6, no cf)

 

[ktsmom]

I seem to be in the "attack doctor" mode but I can't believe they would do an upper endoscopy, before even trying a sweat test, based on her symptoms.

The waiting is really tough; I know you are worried. Can you push the sweat test up earlier?

Our daughter also had NO respiratory infections, DID have chronic ear infections, the constant hunger, falling off the percentile charts, the BM problems you describe.

Ditto to what Rebecca says - be armed with information to help your Doc see what you see. I learned way too late that I don't "give good history" when our Doc was trying to diagnose our daughter.

Sincerely wishing the very best for you.

Dana
Mom to Katy (3, cf) and Kyra (6, no cf)

 

[okok]

It is certainly possible she has CF but the statistics are in your favor so there is a good chance she does not have CF. It is probably good the doctors are scheduling a sweat test so that they can hopefully rule CF out. Does she drink a lot of juice?? I know that can sometimes cause runny/watery stools. I think (but am not sure on this) that it is pretty normal to see bits of undigested food in the stool at 16 months of age especially fiber like grains, corn, beans.... I think it is more unusual to see bits of meat in the stool and that might indicate a problem. Little ones tend to have very fast transit times compared to us which is why it can be (but is not necessarily) normal to see undigested food in the stool.

I wish you the best of luck! i will be hoping for a neagatve sweat test. please let us know the results either way!

 

[okok]

It is certainly possible she has CF but the statistics are in your favor so there is a good chance she does not have CF. It is probably good the doctors are scheduling a sweat test so that they can hopefully rule CF out. Does she drink a lot of juice?? I know that can sometimes cause runny/watery stools. I think (but am not sure on this) that it is pretty normal to see bits of undigested food in the stool at 16 months of age especially fiber like grains, corn, beans.... I think it is more unusual to see bits of meat in the stool and that might indicate a problem. Little ones tend to have very fast transit times compared to us which is why it can be (but is not necessarily) normal to see undigested food in the stool.

I wish you the best of luck! i will be hoping for a neagatve sweat test. please let us know the results either way!

 

[okok]

It is certainly possible she has CF but the statistics are in your favor so there is a good chance she does not have CF. It is probably good the doctors are scheduling a sweat test so that they can hopefully rule CF out. Does she drink a lot of juice?? I know that can sometimes cause runny/watery stools. I think (but am not sure on this) that it is pretty normal to see bits of undigested food in the stool at 16 months of age especially fiber like grains, corn, beans.... I think it is more unusual to see bits of meat in the stool and that might indicate a problem. Little ones tend to have very fast transit times compared to us which is why it can be (but is not necessarily) normal to see undigested food in the stool.

I wish you the best of luck! i will be hoping for a neagatve sweat test. please let us know the results either way!