Abdominal Pain, Low Grade Fever, vomiting...appendix, Constipation or Other??

Updated on May 12, 2012
R.S. asks from San Antonio, TX
5 answers

I am documenting this for myself and for other parents reference concerning what my son has been dealing with for the past few days. We have a pediatric appointment in an hour so I will be able to post a what happened very soon, but I would love some other's input.

All night leading into Thursday morning my son was tossing and turning moaning with a stomach ache, (he did not eat dinner the night before), at breakfast he was laying over on the table refusing to eat, then he went and vomited. The pain got better but was still there. About an hour after that he started running a 99.9 low grade fever. The pain was bearable and did not increase in severity and by dinner time he was playing and goofing around...he did not eat dinner again...by bedtime he had no fever and just slight pain around his belly button (the pain was always at and around his belly button...it never shifted). He did not throw up again just the one time around 7am.

This morning he told me he still had a stomach ache but other than that he felt fine, no fever,...he didn't eat breakfast, had a few sips of soy milk. He went off to school, he wandered from the bus into the nurses office doubled over in pain and then threw up on the floor. She called me and I went and got him, calling to make an appointment with the doctor on the way...he says it still hurts around his belly button. However, since getting home has gone from pale and nauseous to perky, playful, rolling around with his sister and does not look sick at all. No fever, no nausea, slight pain (if you can totally believe him).

This is the second episode of this he has had...two weeks ago, he had the exact same symptoms for 24 hours and was back at school and perfectly fine.

I feel this is something chronic...and I am glad to be going to the pediatrician...any one else run into this with their child or something similar? Ideas? Questions I should ask? (I can check the site from my phone). Thanks.

Oh he is seven...

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So What Happened?

The doctor did a urinalysis...normal. Then an abdominal xray...my son was so backed up/constipated that it was causing the cramps/pain and vomiting.

We will get him all cleaned out and see if all the symptoms disappear....

More Answers

A.W.

answers from Kalamazoo on

Is he going poop regulary? My daughter had a issue of not going poop often enough (digestive tracked messed up from 2 rounds of antibiotics). She was so backed up that her stomach was bloated and painful. Doc did Xrays and put her on Miralax for 6mo until regular and distended bowels could heal. Doc said if it wouldn've got worse, she would have been vomiting. It was very painful for her and it would come and go. When stool backs up and stays in, it can cause an infection and fever too.

Good Luck - hope the doc can give some answers! It's good to take him in. I waited almost a month to take DD in because it would come and go.

2 moms found this helpful
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L.R.

answers from Washington DC on

This could be many things (including a food allergy, irritable bowel, or many other things) but be sure at least to ask about "chronic appendicitis." Even some doctors don't realize that not all appendicitis is "acute appendicitis" that progresses rapidly and ends with the appendix being removed (or bursting). Appendicitis can be chronic, meaning it goes on and flares up over time, and can have these symptoms you describe.

I would insist that he go to the hospital for tests which probably will include an ultrasound and possibly an MRI. I would not "wait and see" this time but go to the ER. ERs usually expedite children when they come in so he should be seen almost immediately.

My daughter had appendicitis with almost no vomiting (one small vomit) and no fever until about two hours before the operation itself. She was given an ultrasound that did not show swelling typical of appendicitis and then given an MRI that also did not show typical swelling. But a surgeon said he was 99 percent sure that that's what she had -- and he was right. She had it removed the next day. She also never had the screaming, doubled-over pain that most of us associate with it -- until about one hour before the operation.

So appendicitis can take many forms. Don't let the doctor say that "because the pain's not focused on the right side, it's not that." My child's pain was right around her belly button, not on her right side. Again, this may be irritable bowel, twisted bowel, a food allergy even -- but you can't know without more testing than you can get from just one visit to the pediatrician. Hope your son improves soon and you get a diagnosis fast.

1 mom found this helpful

J.S.

answers from Hartford on

If this only started two weeks ago, that's not "chronic." Chronic is over the course of years.

If I had to guess, I would say gastroenteritis. I hope your son is feeling better soon and that it's nothing more serious than an infection that needs some time to clear up. It will take the good bacteria in his digestive system some to build back up, so it will likely be another couple of weeks before he's feeling 100%.

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L.M.

answers from Chicago on

As I was reading this it sounded like the appendicitis I recently had. I'm glad to hear he doesn't need surgery. However, I hope you find the cause of why he was backed up. All those toxins not being eliminated can cause real problems in the short term and the long term.

S.T.

answers from Kansas City on

don't give him soy milk, it does absolutely nothing for bone formation!!! we were told this by our sons' craniofacial plastic surgeon. our oldest son was lactose intolerant for his first year and when we mentioned the soy milk to his surgeon he was very adament about the dangers of soy milk. the whole staff of his cleft palate team was very adament about it. either give him lactaid or find another source of calcium. as for what is wrong, could be food allergy, could be anything. take him to a specialist

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