My 5 month old has been constipated for 4-5 days now , he just went to see his doctor today ( 7/18/18 ) @ 2:45pm his doctor recommended glycerin suppositories and prune ( gerber ) we just tried the glycerin he is pretty constipated it worked a little but his bowel movements seem to get stuck half way and he struggles to poop , my husband noticed water kinda looked red as if it was a little bit of blood , doctor said if it didn’t work right away to try again in 3 hours but I’ve tried massaging his tummy while he pushes and holding his legs up to his tummy but he just turns really red and struggles to push , he has fallen asleep now but has half of his bowel movement stuck and can’t push it out ( TMI sorry ) does anyone know what else I can do to help my son ?
Nothing has happened yet he is still struggling
Call the doctor and see if you can bring the glycerin with you, to have them do it and if it still doesn't work immediately, they can tell you what to do next. Being severely impacted can cause long term issues, and you want to get this cleared up right away.
Keep working with your doctor.
If this becomes an obstruction or a twisted bowel he'll need surgery.
I have no idea how fast suppositories are suppose to work but prune juice takes awhile.
The doctor said to try again in 3 hours - so follow that advice.
Did he say anything about a warm bath?
A warm bath seemed to help our son when he was having intestinal issues.
Review what he's been eating and drinking.
If he's this constipated and on formula it might be time to try a different formula but ask the doctor about that.
Keep breastfeeding or giving formula and CALL the 24 hour NURSE LINE at your doctor's office for medical advice!
We tried prunes, bicycle movements (gentle) and massage. That took care of it in our case.
What is baby having to eat? Breastmilk, formula, solids?
Do I understand right? He has poop on the outside of his anus? If so, pull on it. It's likely to break off and that's OK. There is no reason to keep it poking out. Removing it may help him push. And he will be more comfortable. You can also use a gloved finger to help scoop out any still in the sphincter.
There have been several of my family members with chronic constipation. Removing what is out has helped.
The glycerin suppository needs to stay inside until it's melted. The greasy melted glycerin is what lubricates the passage. Perhaps you can keep it in by continuing to hold it in. I saw my mother do that.
Make sure that he is staying hydrated!! Dehydration can cause this.
My son was constipated a lot when he was a baby, though not as bad as your little one. Suppositories did not work. They didn't work for one of my older girls either, though she was a toddler when she had the problem. Juice helped her. When my son was almost 2, we finally got allergy testing done due to a rash he got with peanut butter. He is allergic to peanuts and milk. Well it turns out that once we stopped the milk, constipation just disappeared. I would get him into the doc if these do not kick in soon. And talk about having testing done. I don't think all problems are related to allergies but sometimes....
Poor little guy. What is he eating? An exclusively breastfed baby can retain poop for a week and be fine (mine pooped every 10 days, and we did not leave the house on day 10- this is OK for a breastfed baby, but not if there is anything else in the diet). If he is getting formula, is the concentration correct? Is he taking solids? He's not old enough to need them quite yet, and taking calories from cereals can reduce the amount of liquid he consumes, which can lead to constipation. He should not be drinking water at this age. Until 6 months, all he should get is breastmilk or formula. That's the first thing I would look at. For the next 24 hours, give him nothing but that and see if it improves. Struggling to defecate and hard stools can indeed lead to anal fissures (tears) which would be red blood in the stool.
i'm a little surprised that your pediatrician just recommended a suppository and prunes for a baby who hasn't had a bowel movement for 4 days. keep trying the suppositories- it will take them a while to soften stool that hard.
you might need to very gently insert a gloved and lubricated finger just a little and massage the impacted poop to help it break up and get out. be very careful, but you can actually physically scoop it out.
which is what i would have hoped would happen in the doctor's office. another good option would be to call them back and ask them to help do just that.
poor little guy. if he's in serious pain you may have to take him to Urgent Care if your pediatrician won't help him.
khairete
S.
SO sorry. This is hard, and the glycerin suppositories do help. However, if you can't get him to poop, you will need to take him to the ER. I don't know anything about your area, but you need to pick a hospital with an ER that has a pediatric attending. Your pediatrician will know which hospital to take him to.
Are you feeding him baby food? Maybe you should stop feeding him food until this is resolved. Formula or breast milk only.
You can't let this go. It can be life-threatening. B is absolutely right.
What did the dr say if that didn't work. I would think if those still have not worked call the dr or take him to the ER. The glycerin should have worked. My son had issues even with nursing him. I had to use the glycerin regularly. I didn't let him go over 24 hours after the first time of about 48 hours of not going. The longer he goes the more impacted it will get. If you are using formula you might need to look at changing what you are giving him.
I hope he's better today!
Mom always gave prune juice, warm oj, and apple juice if it does to your kids what it did to mine (almost instant loose stool).
