weaning 16 month off zantac

Ok so we are on week 4 of weaning my son off zantac. He's 16 months old and has been on it since 4-5 weeks old. He has silent reflux. We've tried weaning him 4 other times throughout his life and it's never worked out.  

We've been to a GI specialist and she wanted us to do the following:
1 week- skipping am dose and giving maalox instead
2nd week- skipping am dose and no maalox
3rd week- giving pm dose every other night

So far so good, i think. I don't hear any of the wet burps like i used to. His naps during the day are fine. He seems fine. But lately, he's been getting up at night. Sometimes once a night, sometimes not at all and sometimes 4 times a night.

So really... how do i know if he outgrew the reflux and is waking for some other reason OR if he's in pain and hasn't outgrown the reflux? Since he's always been a terrible sleeper... how do i know for sure?

[Ratnakar Kini, MD]

Hi,
You need to follow him up for a period of time.
If he gets repeated respiratory infection and if he is not gaining weight, then probably he is still having gastroesophageal reflux.