Never Posted Before But Have Many Questions

[ArGem0709]

My name is Lisa and I have 2 children - a 4 y.o. girl and a 20-month-old boy, Ben. At about one year of age, shortly after he was weaned, Ben's growth started to slow down. He also developed digestive issues and rhinitis. He has only gained one pound since his first birthday, and has only grown about one inch in that time too. He is currently 23 pounds and only 30.5 inches tall. He is now under the 3rd %ile for height and down to about the 15th for weight. From birth to age one he was always around the 50th %ile for both. To look at him he looks like an average one-year-old and still wears some 6-12 month clothing. Our daughter is very tall and well proportioned. Ben is tiny - his hands, wrists, feet (only size 4!), arms and legs are so small. I seriously think he's suffering from some kind of malabsorption. He eats a TON, by the way, and gets a lot of healthy variety in his diet.

He constantly swings back and forth between constipation and diarrhea. The diarrhea is always the same - large, messy poops containing a lot of undigested food. He has been fighting one infection or another for months - usually ear infections. He is actually having his adenoids out tomorrow. Our doctor says there's nothing wrong with him and his growth is fine. I asked her to test him for celiac and the ttg came back normal, although he had elevated platelets and eosinophils. Does anyone know if thick, yellow toenails (looks like fungus) are seen in children with digestive problems, malabsorption, or food sensitivities? I have also read that the ttg test isn't reliable in children his age, but I don't know what to do. I'm convinced that he is at the very least sensitive to wheat/gluten, but no doctor wants to touch him with a 10 foot pole (for allergy testing) because of his age. Does anyone have advice how to bring up the subject of allergy testing with doctors?

I'm so confused. I want my son's problems taken seriously. Everyone just brushes it off with "Oh, grandpa was short" or "Don't worry, he'll catch up". Each month that goes by he falls further and further behind.

[Dixiebell]

Welcome to the forum Lisa.

Did the Dr. do any other tests and do you have copies of the tests? Have they tested vitamin levels? You could also do stool testing to see if there is something going on (parasites, fat in stool, etc). The Dr. can order this for you.

Celiac tests:

Anti-gliadin antibodies (AGA) both IgA and IgG

Anti-endomysial antibodies (EMA) - IgA

Anti-tissue transglutaminase antibodies (tTG) - IgA and IgG

Total IgA level

Deamidated Gliadin Peptide (DGP) Antibodies, IgA & IgG

[larry mac]

My two daughters had chronic ear infections when they were toddlers. They were frequently on antibiotics, which can mess up your stomach. Finally made the decision to have the ear tube operations on both of them. It was like a miracle. No more infections, no more antibiotics, no more pain, for them or me.

best regards, lm

[ArGem0709]

Welcome to the forum Lisa.

Did the Dr. do any other tests and do you have copies of the tests? Have they tested vitamin levels? You could also do stool testing to see if there is something going on (parasites, fat in stool, etc). The Dr. can order this for you.

Celiac tests:

Anti-gliadin antibodies (AGA) both IgA and IgG

Anti-endomysial antibodies (EMA) - IgA

Anti-tissue transglutaminase antibodies (tTG) - IgA and IgG

Total IgA level

Deamidated Gliadin Peptide (DGP) Antibodies, IgA & IgG

He had a bunch of stool testing for parasites at the same time as the bloodwork - all negative.

[Happyw5]

I know that some kids can just be tiny, my sisters kids are rediculously little... In 2003, I was really sick, and it was after anything that I ate... Drs brushed me off for a long time and I just kept going from specialist to specialist with every test under the sun done... That whole time my eosiniphil count was extremely high (was tested for every parasite) and they couldn't figure it out... I finally begged to go to an allergist because my family has a lot of food allergies... It turned out I was having a reaction to peanut butter (which I really didn't eat that often) but my belly was so irritated that know matter what I ate I would react. Then in 2007 I began falling asleep right after I ate (It's always my first sign) and I had them run a cbc and my eosiniphil count was again like 30%... They tested me and I had all sorts of new allergies... Now in 2010 the same thing has happened... I think at the very least I would see an allergist!