This is my first time asking a question I hope I can get some help. My 3.5 year old will run around the house and scream at the top of his lungs no problem but as soon as he starts to eat he screams saying his throat hurts. He is full out crying and than refusing to eat. We tell him to drink and take tiny bites. He will say his throat hurts to eat a chicken nuggett but than he will calm down and after a little bit eat some doritos but than after maybe 4 will say his throat hurts and will stop eating. He is an actor but I can't tell with this and it is getting more frequent and starting to scare me. He has very bad allergies I am wondering if it could be drainage or maybe reflux? (My other son has reflux bad) Thanks for listening.
So I took my son first to an ENT and he thought it might be reflux and put him on prevacid but wanted us to see a pediatric GI. We ended up with an appt the very next day and he was scoped the following day. They did a biopsy and said everything looked good and the biopsy came back negative. The doctor thinks he might be having muscle spasms but he seems to be doing much better since being on the prevacid. We are going to keep him on the prevacid until he has been sympton free for at least a week. Thank you for all your great advice I greatly appreciate it.
Does he have other sympoms? Does he have a fever, congestion, a runny nose? Does his neck hurt (swollen glands) Think of it as a symptom and see if it is consistent. Sounds to me like he is tryng to eat but the pain is stopping him from doing so. It wouldn't hurt to take him to the doctor, it sounds like he really is in pain. He might be exaggerating the degree of it, but it sounds like it is real from what you described.
J.,
A friend of mine has throat issues. Her esophagus is VERY small. She has always had to take very small bites, chew forever, and just in general be careful how she eats. A few years ago it was getting quite bad and she eventually saw a specialist. This condition has some very drastic procedures for severe cases. Thankfully the doctor determined her case was not severe and directed her to drink something WARM with all her meals. Once she started that, she hasn't had any further issues eating.
The warm liquid helps the muscle relax and allows the esophagus to expand as it is designed to do. Something cold to drink will make the muscle contract.
I would try to determine if it is a manipulation thing or if something is actually physically going on. If it is something physical, I would take him to see the doc. Keep in mind....when he gets hungry enough he will ask for food. Also, toddlers can have a real erratic diet. One day they are starving, the next they aren't hungry at all.
Good luck!
i would take him to the pediatrician just to see if its strep or allergies. Also to see if hes pulling your leg. Something says he is because he complains to get junk food instead of good food but than its hard to say because he still complains after with the junk food. I would take him in just to see he might have just scratched his throat too.
Throat pain, food refusal, potential reflux and allergies makes me think it could be EE. I would take him to a good ped GI doc and inquire about a scope to try to rule it out. You can visit www.APFED.org for more info on EE.
hey there i would try cipaqure the throat numming spray and something real cold while he eats if that dose not help i would make a doc app
i had a foster child with a similar problem he would coplain it hurt to swallow etc. they did a special ctscan. his proplem was a narrow esphagoush.
Hi J.,
If it's just starting or seeming to get worse then he might have allergies that aren't manifesting any other way except for throat restrictions. It could be a sensory issue, too. I would take him to the doctor and have him checked out thouroughly to make sure there isn't a physical reason for it. If he's able to dring I would be trying to at least get something like the Carnation Instant Breakfast into him for nutritional support until you get through this.
Good luck - S.
