Omg

[barbie]

Eric went for shots on Monday. I refused the MMR vaccine just out of the sheer suspect nature of it in relation to autism. Plus its make from chicken fetuses (nasty), which I think is a fancy way of saying almost an egg. Eric is allergic to eggs.

Anyways, they weighed him and measured him. In January he had his physical and he weighed 30 pounds and 37 3/4 of an inch tall. On Monday 7/21/2008, he is still 30 lbs and grew 3/4 of an inch. Now since I had to call the pediatrician, i am once again to assume they dont really pay attention unless its a physical and they plot on the growth chart. Anyhow I did call and brought his height and weight to the attention of the ARNP after a minute she realized he hasnt gained any weight? Yes, thats why I called. Well she looked at the growth chart and gets back on the phone and says Eric is in the 25th percentile for height and the 5th percentile for weight. Wait just a damn minute here, why do I have to tell you that there is something strange about this, you weigh him when we go there. She offers me an appointment for Friday at 7am, which I accept, normally they dont see me that early in the day.

Me being a medical assistant and understanding what possible health conditions this can mean. I order my own stuies for Eric including a celiac panel based on his history of malabsortion of fat, his wheat and gluten allergy, his small rate of growth despite that he eats very well. I keep being surprised how I have to tell them there is a problem instead of them saying okay this is too much for one little four year old boy to have going on, we are going to test and test and test, til we get down to what the issue really is. Im not a doctor, I'm a mom, why can't you tell me, whats wrong.

 

[miche]

You're the mom and you know best, but could it just be that he didn't gain weight this time and that's all? I mean, by 5 year old hasn't gained any weight in about 9 months, but she grew 2 inches. Just a slow down in weight gain, maybe?

 

[BusynMember]

barbie, I'm a mom (no medical assistant...lol), but I did understand SOME of your post. I want to reassure you on the height/weight thing.
My oldest son was 32 pounds at five and in the 25th percentile. He is now 30 and almost six feet tall and fighting the battle of the buldge. This kid stayed skinny for a long time. At 14, he was only 75 lbs. It could be genetic.
On the MMR thing, I don' tknow much. All my kids got MMR shots and none got Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) from it. My Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) son had Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) way before he got the MMR and the MMR didn't make it worse. But I see wisdom in giving them shots at different times.
On the absorbtion stuff--sorry, don't know squat about that.
Have a good day.

 

[Josie]

You say he is allergic to gluten and wheat and other things. Is he on the gluten free diet? How do you know he is allergic?

My kids both have (unofficially diagnosis'ed by me) celiac disease so I understand what you are talking about absorbtion and growth concerns.

If he isn't already on the gluten free diet, you don't need a doctor to give you permission to do it. With your concerns about him, I think it would be worth trying.

If he is already on the diet, are you sure you have all of the gluten out of his diet? We have to avoid anything that may contain traces of it. At least 1/2 the time that I eat in a restaurant, I get some accidental gluten so you might need to avoid eating out. A good resource for gluten free dieting is www.glutenfreeforum.com.

If he is already on the gluten free diet, the celiac panel will probably not be positive. You have to be eating gluten for it to be positive.

You might have to go out of the mainstream medical world to get the answers you are wanting. I have found that mainstream medicine tends to treat symptoms and then only if they meet their definition of a problem. As an example, my daughter had a low grade fever for weeks along with a headache. The doctors thought she was depressed because her fever didn't meet their definition of a fever. It turns out she has Lyme Disease.

I have had the best luck with physicians, with an MD, who practice outside the mainstream parameters. Most of them have not been covered by insurance but have been very helpful.

 

[klmno]

I don't blame you for being concerned and proceeding with those tests. But, as another who saw wierd growths in my son, I wouldn't be overly concerned until you see how the results come back. My son was always on the lower end of the chart, too, until he reached puberty and since being on medications. Anyway, he would eat well and seem to put on a little weight, then he would grow taller and look terribly skinny and weigh less. I was told that the growth spurts burn calories or something like that. I don't remeber exactly- just that I could quit worrying so much about his weight if he was eating fairly well (which he was) and he was having normal growth. If your son had grown any taller, I would be more concerned.