Son Complaining of Leg Pain

most likely its growing pains. my oldest son has been getting them for years. he suffers terribly with them. I have found that sometimes a heating pad on low works well. You may want to try some tylenol. I would keep an eye on how often this happens and for how long. My son gets them about every four to six months and generaly last a couple of days. Calling the doctor never is a bad thing, you are a mom and you know your child better than anyone.

My son who is also 3 1/2 started complaining about leg/foot pain about a year ago. I noticed when he
wore new shoes this would happen the most. The pediatrican told me it is growing pains and not to worry about them.
I do the same thing rub his leg/foot with "special" cream
and it seem to dissipate. I also offer him water.
If he is not eating enough of fruit, veggies or water
this can also cause leg cramps. Bananas, potatoes(sweet or
white) anything with potassium, magnesium or calcium helps
alleviate leg cramps/pain.
I hope I helped.
K.

Hi C., I would say it is most likely growing pains. You should check with your Dr. to ease your mind. One of my sons complained of the same (boo boo knees) and he grew to be the tallest of my 4 sons. I also don't think a child can get fibromyalgia but I am not a Doctor. good wishes,Grandma Mary

I would tell the pediatrician ASAP. Just call him and tell him your situation and whether or not blood work would be necessary. My husband was diagnosed with rheumetoid arthritis as a child and by the time the doctors were told he had slipped into complete paralysis. He was in that state for several years. Luckily, his little body grew stronger and was able to battle it (now its under remission but his bones sufferred a lot) and now he is being told by specialists that he has to undergo a hip replacement at 42!!!Of course he is not jumping on that just yet. Back to your little boy,PLEASE do not wait and just tell your doctor and don't forget to tell him about your mom and her recent diagnosis. Good luck!

My son actually for a bit complained that his leg hurt, granted he didn't wake up in the middle of the night either. I'd get it checked out it probably is nothing and just growning pains like you say. As far as fibromyalgia, I hardly doubt he has that, seems a bit young. My mother in law has it and it's not an easy thing to diagnos. The really only have I believe it's a 7 point trigger test to determine if someone has it and it's still hard to detect and they don't even know what the cause is. But it can be handed down thru DNA as well. They also say that fibro is or can be caused by a stressful time in your life, example: a tramatic car accident. I hope that I didn't stress you out more. Hope this helps in some way.

C.,
I would definately talk to your doctor. I know it is common in childhood to have growing pains, my brother had them. It is also possible for him to be getting Charlie Horses, if that is the case try increasing the potassium in his diet. I suffere from them during my pregnancies and the doctor told me to try to eat one banana a day because they are high in potassium. I would try having him stretch his legs when he gets up in pain. I have been relieved by them by pointing my toes up to the ceiling and flexing them to point to my nose. I have also been told that standing on something cold like a tile floor or wet towel help.
I am sure that it is just something kids go through, but I would be sure to check with your doctor. Not to scare you, but a friend of my sister-in-law had a son who woke up screaming in pain multiple times every night and the doctor just kept telling the parents it is nothing to worry about. After more that 6 months of severe pain and many sleepless nights. They faught with the doctor to do a MRI to make sure nothing is wrong and they found a tumor on him spinal cord. Unfortunately it was inoperable and he had to go through chemo and radiation, but it had spread too far and it was taking over most of his major organs. I am not telling you this to scare you, I just want to make sure that if your doctor brushes it off as growing pains and he continues with the pain or the pain gets worse please get a second opinion and make sure that they do tests to find out the cause of the problem. Good Luck

Hi C.,
The leg pain can be muscular skeletal. That is a fancy term for nothing serious. He could be strainig his musculs from play time. Is there a favorite move he enjoys...jumping off the couch, hanging from the monkey bars by his knees? These things wouldn't cause immediate injury just stress and strain in that area.
Now just for a precaution. I stress precaution! It is always wise to mention this to your doctor. Why? Different autoimmune diseases, cancers..leukemia ...would in the very early stages cause weakness and aching in musculs. In time though, just getting up from sleep would prove difficult. He would be tired alot etc. In short..you would know.
The first time it happened, did he get so much "Mommy attention" he felt wonderful?
One last thing, sometimes pain can come from growing too fast. My son had pain behind the knees at 3 yrs. and again older. I believe he did in fact have growing pains. He is 5 feet tall and not yet 10. It was a ache he felt, not out and out pain.
I hope this helps and I didn't scare you too much! I just wanted to give you every scenario.

~Lee~

The best advice for you and your little guy is to see a Doctor. Keep a diary of how often this occurs, how long, and what his activities were for the day.( might help, when visiting the Dr.) Keep us posted on what you decide to do. Good Luck!

Hi C.,
I would say what your son has is growing pains.
I had them as a child and my daughter did and now her son has them. They were worse when he was a little younger but have gotten better. My daughter's Dr suggested that she give her son a pain medication when he gets the pain. If it's earlier (not in the middle of the night) you could give him a bath to relax his legs. I would talk to the Dr though. My dauther's Dr said it was growing pains but could also have something to do with the growthe plates in his legs and her Dr watches him. He is now 9 and rarely ever complains of pain. I guess (as far as my family goes) that it could be passed down from generation to generation but in most cases it's just growing pains. Fibromyalgia is a very common thing now a days. I have it, my daughter has it and so does my sister. Her Fibromyalgia is very bad. Many can have very bad cases of it.
They say that diet and exercise it the best for it. Mild exercising...even just walking is good.
Yoga is great. Good luck with David. I hope I was helpful in some way. Have a good weekend.
D.

Hi C.,

It is likely that he is having growing pains - but you show definitely talk with your pediatrician about it just to rule out any other prolems. Don't distress, but do reach out. Heat packs (not too hot :) ) can also be helpful to him. Good luck!
AMR

A calcium-mag supplement could possibly help. I also used to experience an extreme leg cramping at night when I was young. Almost daily, I would awaken w/ extreme cramping going up and down my one leg. It would last maybe a couple minutes, but felt like forever. It helps to flex and point your feet while going through it. Let me tell you, I was told time after time that I needed to eat more bananas, even though I already ate them on a daily basis. It's when I stopped consuming bananas that my nightly leg cramping came to an end. And if I decided to eat one, that very night I would once again wake up with a horrible leg cramp. So if he's already eating bananas everyday, you should maybe try a couple days without them.

my guess would be that it is growing pains and they come and go...another thought though...what kind of shoes does he wear? My first son has flat feet and he would complain of leg(shin and calve)pain...once we put him in shoes with a better archs he stopped complaining...I had best luck with striderite, new balance, lands end and ll bean...all seemed to fit wide feet as well as have great archs and for the summer we do the trekers not sandles for more support.

My oldest son is 7 and still complains of leg pains...my Dr. said it's just growing pains...but you should ask yours at his next check up to make yourself feel better

Hi C.,
I had the same issue when i was younger and my mom used to tell me it was in my head. Finally she took me to a podiatrist and they found out that I had flat feet. The leg pain was due to falling arches. The rubbing of the legs does help, so does a little tylenol. I thankfully grew out of it. you just need to find shoes with good arches in them to help the support.
My daughter has leg pains and I took her to the same Dr. Her hips are uneven and they suggested inserts for her shoes. She wore them when she was younger but then started to say they were uncomfortable. She still gets the leg pains especally when she wears junky shoes.
These aren't major things, but take the leg pain seriously. I have been told by many people including Dr's that there is no such thing as growing pains.

HI! My oldest daughter is now 7 years old and we have gone through the growing pains. If it is both legs, in the same place, at the same time most likely it is growing pains. I had to give her some Childrens Tylenol when it was real bad. There were times when she hurt just laying around and she is a hyper child who rarely "lays around". We had her tested for arthritis too because she had a rare sickness when she was 3 that can cause arthritis in children and she had so much pain. It most likely is not artritis but ask you doctor. I would ask your doctor about the fibromyalga and tell them why you are concerned. I have no idea what it is but asking won't hurt! A.

If you are concerned, I believe you should always see a doctor first. Leg cramps at night are fairly common in kids. My daughter got them at a young age, especially after a very physically active day. Running, jumping rope, etc..Try a warm bath and have him eat a banana at bedtime (the potassium is supposed to help with cramping). After the bath, you can gently stretch the muscles in his calf by flexing the foot up towards his knee (keeping the knee straight) and holdong that position for about 30 seconds. Repeat 3-4 times on each leg. We have an outdoor hot tub that she would go in before bed and she never had any problems on the nights that we did that. Good luck!

Do u know if your son was tested for MCADD (medium chain acyl-coA dehydrogenase deficiency)at birth on the newborn screening? My daughter has it & it causes leg pain. Its a simple blood test for acylcarnitine. You never know...

O my God C. I thought I was going crazy, my son too has been getting leg pain for a while now, and I thought he's just to young for growing pains. I did take him to the doctor and he said they were growing pains, and they told me to put bangay but I was not to content with that so i began to research info regarding this, big mistake, this just makes you even more worried. I did look up info on Soy milk I'm not sure if your son drinks this or not, but there are plenty of reasons including not enough calcium and this effects there growth. If I can give you one advice it would to call the doctor so they can document. I didn't do it so when I took him recently to the doctors it was the first time they heard about it, and this is why they didn't treat the problem more seriously. The advice they gave me was if it happen again then they would do blood work, Luckly he's been okay. Hopefully this was alittle helpful. Best of Luck

Hi C.,
Although your son's leg pain could very well be growing pains I do suggest you take him to the Dr. to have him get and check up. It could be synovitis, an infection that does pass but can be very painful or it could be something out of alignment in hip or long bone.
M. - nurse

My sister had the same problem with her son and the doctor said he was growing in height very fast and it was causing the leg pain. She would use an old home remedy of rubbing alcohol and massage the leg then wrap it with a towel or cloth diaper to help ease the pain. A heating pad on a low setting seemed to work as well if he will let you put it on and hold it for 10-15 minutes. She was also told that bananas or high potassium foods helped as well. Hope this helps. Good luck.

sounds like leg cramps. i had them when I was little. also known as growing pains, my docs called it. rubbing helps, supposedly banana's too. i found a dose of advil with heat works best.

I think the best thing to do would be to take David to the doctor.

I'm just guessing with this one....leg cramps because of low levels of calcium??? I know that's what I get, but for a young boy, I don't know! Have you searched the internet about leg cramps or calcium levels? Might be worth a try!

Hi C.,
My daughter often wakes up in the middle of the night with leg pain. Most frequently in the knee/shin area. I asked the pediatrician and he's pretty sure these are just growing pains. Most of our growing happens when we are sleeping.He said I should make sure she is hydrated and getting plenty of potassium as these things can also cause leg cramping.
A.^-^
(mother of 7-year-old girl & 2-year-old boy)

My younger one had this, it was growing pains for her, it lasted what seemed like forever, she is fine now, shes 21, and has no adverse effects. You can always go to your pediatrician to confirm, but I don't believe it is anything to worry about. Good luck. I know it's heartbreaking.

I would have him thoroughly tested for Lyme Disease. It could very possibly be growing pains, but why not check it out. Don't know where you live, but where I do, Lyme is a big concern. Be safe, not sorry. Good luck!

HI, I have a four year old son, who has been complaining of the same thing. He says "his whole body hurts", or " my legs hurt". I asked my pediatrician, and he checked him out and said that he was very flexible, so, from being active throughout the day he may be overextending his joints therefore causing soreness at night. You may want to ask your pediatrician if that may be the same for your son. Hope this helps!

Hi C.,

I see you already have a lot of responses, but I just wanted to add. I would definitely take him to the doctor. My cousin's son was experiencing the exact same thing, he's 5. They went for an x-ray and found that he had tumors in the bone of his leg. The tumors actually caused a hairline fracture which was causing the pain. The tumors were benign, but they still had to scrape the bone to get rid of the tumors. I'm not saying this is the case with your son, but it wouldn't hurt to get it checked out until you are satisfied, because you just never know. Hopefully it's nothing.

Good luck,
J.

You have your hands full with those three darling boys! Fibromyalgia is rarely diagnosed in children so don't let that drive you crazy. But if it's a nightly occurrence rather than an occasional, it might be worth a call to the pediatrician. I think I would if it became nightly. My third child has leg, ankle, knee pains at night occasionally and has since she was very little but it wasn't nightly. I did check with the doctor who said that it's not abnormal and if it's not stopping her from regular activity or hasn't worsened, she may grow out of it. It is less now at 11 years old.

I would call your pediatrician and perhaps test him for Lyme Disease if the pain continues. It could be growing pains - both my boys have complained of this for a night or so - but if it lasts longer than a couple of days I would check with his Dr. He also could have a virus that is causing some deferred discomfort. Hope he is feeling better soon.

sounds like growing pains NOT Fibro myalgia

I want to suggest a Rub and a bath before bed, it could help him relax

Sort of like what swimmers and athletes do to wind down after an event

it could help him

M
mother of 3 boys

I have a friend that recently was experiencing the same thing with her daughter. She also thought it was growing pains, it turned out to be strep throat. I know how weird that sounds but apparently leg pain is a symptom of strep even when there is no complaint of throat pain. Unfortunatley, children can get fibromyalgia too. Either way I think a call to the pediatrician would not hurt. I tend to take my children complaining of pain seriously. Maybe it could turn out to be nothing but at least you checked it out. Good lUck and I hope your son feels better soon.

I have a very wild 4 year old boy who has also complained off and and on for 2 years about leg pain at night. I talked to my pediatrian -- who confirmed that they were likely growing pains. Plus since they ONLY happen at night time - I was less concerned. Here is what I observed about my son: He bounces like tigger wherever he goes. So of course - his legs hurt as he is relaxing to go to asleep. Talk to your doctor though -- and good luck!

Hello C.,
I have experienced leg pains with my almost 10 year old, we have found that having her eat extra bananas for the potassium helps. We were told by her ped. that low potassium causes leg cramps that can also be related to "growing pains". My daughter has also found that the heating packs that you warm up in the microwave seem to help as well, we dont make them hot, just warm. We have also given her motrin if they are really bad as well as rubbing her legs with aspercreme (this may not be spelled right!), if I remember correctly this can be used on children as young as 2. There are also natural pain creams that may be better for your little guy.
My younger children have complained of leg pain as well but not as much as my very active almost 10 yead old.

Good luck, it is no fun waking up to a child in pain.

E.

Thoguh it is probably growing pains, my son had the same thing. I would still contact a doctor. Childhood leukemia can start out with bone pain.

My friend's daughter went through something that sounded exactly like that. In her case it was growing pains. I'd always check with the doc to be sure.

I think that it can never hurt to take him to the doctor. It may have nothing to do with the other diagnosis, but if he is in pain, your doctor may be able to help him. Best of luck!

When my son was younger he had the same issue. I chalked it up to "growing pains". My knowledgeable chiropracter informed me if the body has everything it needs - there will be no growing pains.

He advised we add Calcium-Magnesium supplement. Growing pains gone.

Contact me if you want more specific info.

L.

My son complains of leg pains occationally too. I think it is just growing pains, but if it seen excessive (like he's crying uncontrollably every night when he wakes up) I'd take him to the doctor and have him checked out. Also, I'd take a critical look at what he has been eating, and the nutrient value of the food...he may need some changes in his diet to keep up with his growing body, or a vitamin supplement. There are several deficiencies that come to mind that can cause leg pain, including vitamin C, Calcium, Vitamin D, potassium, and iron...

hi. my son will be 4 in july & he wakes up sometimes numerous times a night screaming that his legs hurt him. doctor says its probably growing pain. i am checking into it further. sounds like it is growing pains, but i would get it checked by a dr or xray.. thats my next step

Hi C.,
I go through the same thing with my daughter and it started about the same age your son is. I took her to the dr to get checked and in our case evrything was fine. The Dr told me to try to keep track of when it happens. My daughter seems to have the problem after she has been playing hard all day running around. I think some of it has been growing pains we do give her tylenol or motrin as needed and I rub her legs in the middle of the night when she wakes up. It has gotten better and doesnt seem to happen as often. It wouldnt be a bad thing to talk to your doctor. Good Luck feel free to email me .
Sherri

It may be nothing, but why risk missing something that could be dangerous if ignored? Call your doctor!! If only because it's waking him (and you) at night, and your doctor could give you advice to soothing the pain.

Hi! My daughter (now 7) had and occasionally still has the same thing. I used to have the same pains as a child myself and my mom always put Bengay on it! LOL. It did help. With my daughter, I tried to be sure she wasnt dehydrated and tried to get her to eat a banana every other day or so because I thought maybe it might be from low potassium. Here is a link to a health board that talks about it-if you cut and paste it to your browser it should come up: http://www.healthboards.com/boards/archive/index.php/t-27.... If it doesnt, they mention low dose tylenol, leg massage, bananas and growing pains. Maybe your doctor could tell you more!

Hi,

My brother when he was younger' between 5 and 9 had the same exact thing. He would wake up and cry because his legs thobbed with pain. He was a very active boy though, is he really active? He was taken to the doctor but nothing was ever found wrong. I would take him to his doc just in case.