Blood incased in Mucus of 1 year old.

[MommytoConnor]

Hi Ladies,

I'm new to the forum and I want to first say hi!!

I hope to get a few answers for my sons ongoing problem.

A little background, my son is 1 year, just turned last month.  My son is breastfed, and was EBF for the first 4 months.  From the day we brought him home he has always complained and whined before a bm.  His bm's first thing in the morning were a great yellow, but by the end of the day it would turn green.  He had explosive bms, I always knew when he was in need of a diaper change without the smell test.

He started sleeping through the night by 9 weeks! Down at 8 up at 8  or 9 the next day.

When we introduced rice cereal within 2 weeks he was waking more frequently and by the 3 weeks he was up EVERY HOUR all day and all night.

This went on until he turned about 11 months, then it was 2 naps a day, one 2 hour, one 1.5 and he would be out when put down at night for a 3-4 hour stretch. But, I ALWAYS had to nurse him to sleep.

We have been cosleeping ever since he started his frequent wakings. So he nurses all night.

He has never stopped the constant complaining before a bm, but now, and only within the last week he is crying and screaming, grunting, red faced etc. before and during, and now there is blood incased in mucus in his bms.  Yesterday all that was in his diaper was mucus with small traces of blood. 

I have been told about fissures, but I thought that they would be actual blood spots in the diaper and without mucus.

I don't know what else to do. I have been to his pedi numerous times and when he was younger he chalked it up to "colic" my arse!

I've always suspected and allergy but my doc refuses to do testing, the believes he's too young and could get false positives.

So a RHN here in town does saliva testing for infants. That's my next go. 

I'm so worried of a partial blockage, but he doesn't have a fever, he has MANY wet diapers as he drinks a ton of water.

I haven't changed my diet in any way. I'm at a loss and I have come close to hitting up the ER.

I'm not sure if anyone has any insight as to what could be causing my LO distress.  Please, any suggestions or possibilities would be appreciated. Thanks!

[dot1]

First of all, hugs!  It's tough to see your lo in that state.

This sounds like a milk allergy.  My friend's dd's both have/had milk allergy.  The oldest had blood and mucous in stool - mom strictly elimionated dairy and the allergy was outgrown.  The 2nd baby ended up with anaphylactic dairy allergy (but didn't have bloody stool).  Her allergist said that if she ever had a 3rd child she should not eat dairy when pregnant.  You ped should refer you to an allergist.  In the meantime it can't hurt to cut out dairy from both of your diets (but don't cheat or it won't successfully eliminate the dairy protein from your body.  goat/sheep milk products are not okay either).  Apparently allergy tests aren't that accurate until they're older...but a trial of dairy elimination could tell you a lot.

[MommytoConnor]

Thanks for your reply.  We saw a specialist and he wants to do other testing, the stool testing to eliminate possible tumors etc.

He thinks it may be polyps in his bowels but he still wants me eliminate dairy in the meantime.

Scary and so very stressful thinking of the possibilities, he's just getting worse and seems to be in more pain with gas and before a bm.

[SweetSilver]

Does he still eat the rice cereal, or other iron-fortified food?  My daughter (also allergic, so I'm not dismissing your suspicions)  is freakishly sensitive to iron supplements, in vitamins or cereal and in her rice cereal when she was an infant.  I finally got wise when she was three and banished those vitamins.  The BM trouble (frequent constipation particularly) was terrible.

The trouble with testing at 1 is that allergies come (dd's wheat kicked in at 3) and go (dairy is well known for this).  Doesn't mean you shouldn't test.  You are seeing some likely symptoms.

[MommytoConnor]

No, I took him completely off the rice cereal about a week ago.  recently I've noticed he pushes, pulls and tugs on his diaper during the pain.

Since he's been on the Lactulose (the specialist recommended) a few days ago his bm's are perfect, no mucus, no blood, and perfect consistancy.  But, he still whines and cries sometimes hours before.  Sleep is still scattered.  An hour here, a half hour there.  One more stool left to add to the test and we'll be dropping it off on Monday, but results can take up to a week and the specialist will be seeing him again in 4 weeks but will fly into the hospital if something else more serious shows up.

4 weeks seems like forever.

[dot1]

Hope it goes well and the dairy elimination helps.  Keep us posted :)

[MommytoConnor]

Will do, and thanks so much for replying.  Its comforting to know there are other mothers out there wiling to lend a hand.

[MommytoConnor]

I just had a thought, my DS had a reaction the last time he had blueberries, really bad, rash around his anus and blood and mucus in his stools, this lasted a day (the day after he had them) 24 to 48 hours after I had devoured a bunch of homemade cranberry orange cookies he had the blood and mucus again, minus the rash.  I checked and blueberries and cranberries are in the same family.  So I'm thinking the allergy thing may be right on the mark, he may have an allergy to something I'm eating regularly.

I'll keep you posted.

[SweetSilver]

Blueberries, cranberries, huckleberries, lingonberries, wintergreen, salal (if you have that one in your area).  Reaction to two doesn't definitely mean reaction to all, but now you can spot the culprit if this happens again.

[heatherdeg]

Mucus in stool (or as stool) is almost (almost) always an indication of allergy.  Blood in the stool can be a few things, but often a rather serious allergy.  If it's berries, you might want to consider an allergy to salicylates (berries, apples, oranges, grapes/raisins, peaches, etc.).  If ANYone in your family (even a cousin) is allergic to aspirin, then there's about an 80% chance of sensitivity to salicylates (although the sensitivity can exist with no relative having an allergy--a relative just makes it a greater chance that this is the problem).

The thing that gets me is the stinky, green bowel movements from very early on.  Sounds like gut flora imbalance.  Was he on a course of abx post-birth?

[MommytoConnor]

Yes, my sister is allergic to Advil. That's weird.  

Abx = antibiotics?  He wasn't but I tested positive for Strep B so I was on the antibiotic drip through labor.

And I don't scarf down any berries or apples on a regular basis. Just so confusing and so difficult to pinpoint the culprit.

[MommytoConnor]

I just did a quick search on salicylites and there are a ton of things, not just fruit.  It's starting to all make sense.  I injest alot of these, and he has as well.

Thanks so much. I will look into it further.

Thanks again. Ill keep you updated.

[heatherdeg]

It's been about a month.  How's it going??