Stomach Pain After Running

If the ultrasound has ruled out constipation and blockages (and, I presume, appendicitis - even though I wouldn't think that pain would go away), and the echocardiogram was negative, you've ruled out a lot of things.

You have advocated well and seen several specialists. I can understand why you are annoyed that one GI specialist says he's fine if he's pooping and not vomiting. I can understand why you don't want to use a strong medication long term.

What I can't understand is why you won't try the medication. Sure, you don't know for sure if it's acid reflux. But it's persistent, and if you used the medication short term (as directed, no skipping doses, but maybe for a month or two, which is what they recommended) to see if your son gets relief, that would make so much sense. Of course you don't want to scope him - by why are you even leaning toward something moderately invasive that would require anesthesia rather than try a medication?

You can/should make dietary changes, and you should check for parasites as others have suggested, but the fact that this pain is exercise-induced but apparently not related to breathing difficulties would seem to me to rule out certain things.

I think you either have to try the meds for 6-8 weeks with some sensible dietary changes or you have to go to a children's hospital and put him through a much more extensive battery of tests with a multi-specialty team. But my guess is they won't look too kindly on you for not being willing to try something relatively simple - you have every right to question and demand answers, but if you're going to ignore a lot of advice, they're likely to give your child's spot to someone else. That's just the reality.

Your poor child is miserable - please use your options.

Has he been checked for appendicitis?
Apparently it's a pain that can start around the belly button and eventually become more focused lower down and to one side.
Not all appendicitis is acute - sometimes it's chronic.
What about hernia?
Can they check his heart again right after a short run seeing as that is when he's having a problem?
Maybe do a minor stress test on a treadmill?

When they scope you - they numb up the back of your throat and it goes down through your nose.
I know it sounds awful but it's not - I've been scoped for what turned out to be re-flux - and it really wasn't bad at all.
(A couple weeks on Previcid cured it right up for me - never had to take it for a long time.)

It wouldn't hurt to do a food diary for him (note everything he eats, drinks, how much, when, etc) along side any symptoms and see if his pains are related to any one specific food - because if it's an intolerance or a food allergy then eliminating that particular item from his diet might help.
I hope they figure this out soon and it's an easy fix!

I have a children with lactose intolerance and one that had possible acid reflux (turned out it was not, but we did the test, and it was very helpful - so I strongly suggest you do this as then you will know and it had no adverse affects on our child.

Lactose intolerance - my personal opinion is you would likely know. Kids are gassy. BMs smell. They have discomfort and generally loose stools if they eat quite a bit of dairy. So I don't think so from what you've written. Doesn't mean he doesn't have food sensitivities.

I would keep a log. Write down what he eats and drinks for three months. You can print off calendar log sheet off internet. Write down BMs for the day. Note tummy aches/pain. Do this and you will definitely see patterns. Take this in next time you go. They need this to be able to see patterns.

Best to you - hope you guys get it sorted out.

Most doctors aren’t properly trained to look for signs of a parasitic infection, which can present as allergies, digestive complaints, trouble sleeping, joint pain, and mood swings. So infections can go undiagnosed or misdiagnosed, allowing your health to decline further.

You can contract a parasite from your pets, from an infected person’s bodily fluids, from unclean food and water, from insect bites, and even from inhaling parasite eggs.

You mentioned you have a dog.
Test for parasites. I know 2 kids similar symptoms than your boy has and it turned out they had worms. You do the worm treatment to the pet but forget to do it yourself and all family members.
The flyer you get when you buy a cat or dog from pet's mart will point out that humans will have the same parasites eventually.

Look into Hulda Clark or see what your Dr will recommend.

welcome to mamapedia.

your son needs to be tested for Crones disease or Irritable Bowel Syndrome.

You need to talk with a nutritionist to figure out the best diet for him.

This might be off the wall, but does your son eat/drink dairy? This sounds a lot like my daughter's lactose intolerance and mine (which came on as an adult). My daughter couldn't tolerate ANY dairy at all at that age.

Just a thought.

I suggest following the dr's advice with the prevacid since reflux is a very likely cause. What my Dr told me about reflux is this: once you have symptoms like this, you need to do 2 things. One is change your diet to avoid food that aggravate the reflux - doctor can give you a list or you can easily google this info - and also you need the prevacid to keep acid levels very low for a few weeks to let your stomach and esophageous heal. That is why you take it for 6-8 weeks - that is the healing time. After 2 months, hopefully your insides are healed and you can then keep from re-damaging them long-term with just the dietary changes.

If you want to know 100% for sure that it's reflux before you give the prevacid, then you have to get the upper GI scope. Personally, I chose to try the prevacid and the immediate improvement in symptoms with the medicine confirmed that reflux was the problem without doing the scope. If the prevacid did not help, then I knew I had to get the scope as well as do additional investigating. So, you need to choose - try the prevacid or get the scope. Either one will give you the info you need to either confirm the reflux and treat it, or do more investigating for more complicated issues. But it makes the most sense to me if you can rule the refux in or out first.

Good luck.

Has he been checked for a hernia? I would also be concerned that he has a torsion happening. That can be fatal. I would be talking to the doctor about what happens if he has a blockage or a torsion, perhaps caused by a hernia.