Today, we met with Andi's pediatrician, to review the puking situation. We got to see Andi's favorite nurse, Shawnee. We see them more than anyone, and they both are very sweet on Andi. Andi loves her, but is still unsure about her Dr. Sometimes she entertains him, and sometimes she gets super upset, cries, blows snot, spits up, swats his hands away. It's pretty funny, at times.
Anyhow, Andi lost 2 oz's since Monday. She weighed in at 16 lbs, 2 oz's today. Could be due to a lesser total amount of food she got yesterday, or it could be due to the lesser amount of calories in this different formula.
We decided to keep her on this formula, as GI will want to see that she was on it a week or two. I've started adding pedialyte to the formula to thin it a bit, and to keep her fluids up. Of course, I ran out this morning and I refuse to go to the grocery store today, which is undoubtedly a zoo. I can add some water to it for the remainder of the day. This formula is so thick, we feel that it hinders the ability to vent the air out of her stomach. Also, when she pukes it comes shooting out her mouth and nose... which increases the risk of aspiration, or inhaling the formula into her lungs. So, by thinning it a bit, we hope to keep her hydration up, and keep the consistency a little thinner.
The Dr. didn't feel that she was at risk at all, and has networked Andi with a few other people to help us figure out a game plan on how best to deal. Luckily, this means that we're going up to the hospital for a feeding clinic evaluation, where we'll be meeting with our favorite dietican Audrey -- whom also adores Andi. Not to brag, but cut me some slack, she's admitted that Andi's her favorite patient!!! Oh yeah. Anyhow, we'll be going up there at some point. Another thing that might occur is a PH study. This would be an overnight stay at the hospital where they shove a tube down her throat and measure the amount of acid that comes up over a 24 hour period. Sounds dreadful. Her Dr. thinks her reflux is causing her to puke, I still maintain that its her stomach having a lot of air - which causes pressure to build up and Andi pukes because of that. But, what do I know? What I do know is that we're going to start with a visit with Audrey and a pediatrician up there, our feeding specialist might stop by too... and then take it from there. By then, we can determine if this new formula is having any positive impact on Andi, and check her weight again to see where she is. Maybe they'll have the magic potion.
I am so sorry you are having to deal with puking. I know the feeling and it is horrible. Laynie used to vomit after every single feeding. It was horrible! We changed her from Neocate to Elecare and it was a miracle! The puking got less and less and now she hardly ever vomits. However, we increased her calories to 30 calories and now she is vomitting again. She has been sick so I am hoping it is due to that and not the increased calories. She also had a ph probe done. The doctor thought she would fail miserably, but it came back normal! I was also shocked. It is so frustrating and hard to deal with. They completely took her off anti-reflux meds because it was so bad and they didn't think any medicine could possibly help. She was vomitting up to 10 times a day. I hope they find a magic potion for her very soon!!! Good luck!
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