Chronic Stomach problems with vomitting and lose bowl movements

[DW1965]

My 12 year old son has been having stomach issues for the past serveral weeks.  He has missed many days of school because of this.  We have taken him to the doctor and they said it is probably just the flu.  He will have diarrhea several times during the night and day and he may vomit and sometimes has a low grade fever.  He will have this for serveral days and then be ok for a few days and then it comes back.  We are at our wits end with this and really don't know what to do.  I hate sending him to school when he is not feeling well but if we did nopt he would have missed several weeks by now.  Any advice for treat ment would be great.  So far we have given pepto bismol and anti diaffhea pills but ths does not seem to be working.

[Kevin Pho, MD]

I would see a pediatric GI physician about this.

Sending the stool off for culture and analysis can be done to exclude infection.

A lower endoscopy can also be considered if inflammatory bowel disease is suspected.  

I would also consider blood tests to exclude celiac disease.

These options can be discussed with your personal physician.

This answer is not intended as and does not substitute for medical advice - the information presented is for patients education only. Please see your personal physician for further evaluation of your individual case.

Kevin, M.D.
www.kevinmd.com

[DW1965]

I forgot to add he also has headaches.