Acid Reflux Disease in Infants

Video Transcript

"Hi I'm Dr. David Hill, and today we're going to talk about acid reflux disease in infants. Of the complaints we get about infants this has got to be among the most common. And in fact, to some degree reflux is a normal part of the infant's functioning. We have learned that reflux may actually help spread good, helpful bacteria from mom's breast milk into the baby's airway to protect it from disease. So there is a reason this happens. Our questions is when is it causing a problem? If reflux seems to be causing your baby to lose weight, cry all the time, be constantly congested or stuffy. Or even worse have breathing problems, then it really needs to be addressed with your child's doctor. The first thing we do when we address reflux is to try and get the baby to eat slightly smaller feeds. Often by adding rice cereal to the formula to increase the caloric density. Now there one formula that has the rice cereal already built into it, and that is this Enfamil AR Lipil. That said, you can do the same thing with a box of rice cereal and the regular formula. So you may not want to pay extra for this product. Another thing we sometimes try to do is to change the type of formula your baby is eating. Obviously, if your baby is breast fed we can really alter the formula. But if you are giving your baby a formula there is some that seem to be a little less allergenic. So we think about the hydrolyzed formulas, specifically casing hydrolysates. I have two examples here, one is Nutramigen Lipil, and the other is Similac Alimentum. These are probably the top two choices for children who seem to be sensitive to proteins in their formula. There are also medicines that we can use, we use versions of Zantac, an antiacid called ranitdine, some people use Axid for that same purpose. And then we can use what are called proton pump inhibitors, medicines like Prilosec or Previcid, to try and reduce the acid in the baby's stomach, which we thing helps. Some people will try positioning, although it's not clear whether things like elevating the head of the bed really make that much difference. The good news is that almost all infants do eventually grow out of their reflux. If you think your infant's reflux is causing significant problems, especially with breathing, weight loss, or fussiness, address it with your pediatrician. He or she should have some great ideas to help you out. Talking about gastroesophogeal reflux in infants, I'm Dr. David Hill."