4 yr old with undiagnosed illness

At 2 1/2 yrs old my now 4 year old son began having blood in his stool.  The amount ranged from a 1/4 tsp to 1 tbsp and had the consistency very much like menstrual blood, clotty and dark. This was seen every stool for over a year except for a 2 week period that we did not see blood.  He also gets severe leg pain, hives, dark circles under his eyes, bruises extremely easily and has pressure-sensitve skin (turns bright red from the lightest touch).  In the past 8 months we have noticed that the above symptoms come in "bouts" they last 1-2 weeks and occur every 4-6 weeks.  Most recently he has been complaining of finger pain (all 10 digits) and keeps his hands clenched in fists throughout the day.  He even picks things up with his wrists so that he does not have to open his hands and he tells us that the fists help the pain.  Along with all this he gets very cranky and "spacey."  He has seen many specialists, rheumatologists, gastroenterologists, diagnostic physicians and we even took him to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN all to no avail. He has had more tests then most adults have had to endure in an entire life and I do not want to put him through anymore unnecessary testing.  All of his blood work has been normal, as have the x-rays, and cat scans. If anyone has any ideas or has ever seen or heard of these specific symptoms before, please, please help. I do not know what to do for my own son, he is in pain and uncomfortable and I am scared for him, yet can do nothing to help him Thank you for any help you can give.
Dorene
dvanhouten@edgellmail.

[Pamela N]

Dorene,
I'm so sorry about what your 4 year old is having to go through. It is good that all the tests are coming up negative though. I wish I had some kind of answer for you, but I'm afraid I'm not going to be of much help with this one.

Have you tried keeping a journal on what your child eats, and what days are better and worse. Maybe that might shed some light on the problem.

Best of luck, and please keep us informed. If I find any information that sounds like it might help, I'll be sure and let you know.

                       Sincerely,
                       Pamela

[Kim Mc]

Dorene -

Check to see if your son has a wheat or gluten allergy.  My cousin's daughter has a severe allergy to wheat and had blood in her stools, behavior problems, skin problems, etc.  You might want to put him on a wheat-free diet for a couple of weeks and see what happens.  It isn't easy to totally eliminate wheat because some form of wheat is in almost everything, but it can be done (my cousin does it) and if that is indeed his problem, it is worth it.

Good Luck,
Kim

[dorene]

Kim, Thank you for your suggestion, however Michael was tested for Celiac's disease 2x's which is the gluten allergy you are speaking of, but I do appreciate every suggestion and thought.
A Depressed Mom - Dorene

[dorene]

Kim, Thank you for your suggestion, however Michael was tested for Celiac's disease 2x's which is the gluten allergy you are speaking of, but I do appreciate every suggestion and thought.
A Depressed Mom - Dorene

[leila]

I really feel for you and your little boy.  I am sure most things  will have been covered by specialists, but I thought I'd mention a few things for consideration:

- is he suffering from anaemia with all this blood loss? I assume it's been checked?  If not, it could be an explanation for his dark eye circles and generally feeling rotten - it doesn't explain the bleeding though.

- you've probably already considered a possible allergy to milk, but if not, might be worth considering.  Also, has he been checked for Crohn's disease, as that can affect different parts of the body and cause arthitic problems?

- keeping a diary sounds a good idea to see if any foods could be making him worse.  If you have the resources, I'd suggest keeping a careful diary of what he eats, when, and any symptoms and when they occur.  If you have the means, I'd go so far as to suggest a statistician be employed to analyse the diary and see if there are any correlations - it's easy for non-mathematical people to miss the more subtle connections.

- has anyone suggested genetic tests of any kind?  Could this be a genetic disorder of some kind?

I really wish I could help. If it is any kind of arthritic disorder, my partner has found Glucoasmine helps him a great deal.
Take care,
Julie

[Concerned lady]

Dorene,

Have you gone to a very good ENVIRONMENTAL AND OCCUPATIONAL MEDICINE doctor yet???

There may be something in your son's environment (home, pre-school, etc.) that is possibly poisoning him, that most doctors would not suspect, but a good ENVIRONMENTAL AND OCCUPATIONAL MEDICINE doctor COULD TEST all the places your son is in, for:

HEAVY METALS (like LEAD in paints, or in PRINTING CHEMICALS, STAIN GLASS WINDOW "solder", etc.)

PESTICIDES:
   INSECTICIDES to kill insects, used on farms, lawns, or in PET FLEA COLLARS, PET FLEA POWDERS, PET FLEA OINTMENTS, termite and ant poisons, etc.
   HERBICIDES used on lawns and on nearby farms to kill weeds
   FUNGICIDES used in some clothing, some children's crib mattresses, on golf courses, etc.

FORMALDEHYDE (embalming fluid) and other toxic (poisonous) fumes that "outgass" from NEW CARPET, NEW PARTICLEBOARD, NEW INSULATION, NEW MATRESSES, NEW UPHOLSTERY, PAINTS, STAINS, NEW PLASTER, NEW HARDWOOD FLOORS HELD DOWN BY TOXIC GLUES, etc. (Did your son ever live in a NEW OR REMODELED home?)

MOLD OR FUNGUS IN THE WALLS OR IN HIS MATTRESS

OTHER FACTORS that you &/or an Environmental doc might think of


Dorene,

What is DIFFERENT, if anything, about the LOCATION, OR DIET, OR  ACTIVITY OR SOMETHING ELSE, of your son, during the times that these periodic bouts of problems happen?

Did these problems start soon after any particular VACCINATION, OR SOME INFECTION?

What exactly does your son eat, for food, and drink?

What is your "gut feeling" about what started all his problems?

HAVE YOU SEEN A VERY GOOD ALLERGIST, YET?

HAVE YOU SEEN A VERY GOOD HEMATOLOGIST (specialist about the blood) YET?

I hope you get his problems figured out soon!

Sincerely,
Concerned lady

***@****
http://cantbreathesuspectvcd.com

[Concerned lady]

Dorene,

You can get many ideas by typing in: blood in stool of toddler, in a "search engine".

Here are just a couple of other ideas I got, by doing this:

1)Was your son ever exposed to a REPTILE PET, like lizards (IGUANAS, etc.), snakes, turtles, etc.?

These pets can sometimes be infected with SALMONELLA, etc., which can then be easily transmitted to an infant or child, by touch. A veterinary doc could test the pet and treat it, if it has this.

2)In 1999, a vaccine called "Rotashield R rotavirus vaccine" was withdrawn off the market, because it caused a condition called "INTUSSUSCEPTION" in some young children, where a part of the intestines "folds in" on itself, which can cause bloody stools, and other problems.

Did your child ever have this vaccination?

You really need to find some EXCELLENT doctor(s) who will spend enough time to help you get some answers regarding your son's problems!

I hope your son gets better soon! He is too young to suffer like this!

Sincerely,
Concerned lady

***@****
http://cantbreathesuspectvcd.com

[loonie_01]

Hi there,

I feel for both you and your child...because I too suffered like that as a child and remember the pain of it. I was diagnosed with an ulcer on the bowel which created alot of blood in the stool and  other symptoms they believed were stress related (I was 7 at the time) has he been checked for any severe ulcers?

Terra

[MOMOF11YROLD]

I KNOW HOW YOU FEEL!!  I HAVE TWO CHILDREN WITH MEDICAL CONDITIONS ONE IS DIAGNOSED AND THE OTHER IS IN THE PROCESS OF IT.
HAVE YOU LOOKED INTO "ORTHOSTATIC INTOLERANCE"?  MY DAUGHTER (AGE 8 NOW BUT GOT IT WHEN SHE WAS 5) HAS IT AND IT CAUSES STRANGE THINGS TO OCCUR.
TYPE IN NATIONAL DYSAUTONOMIA RESEARCH FOUNDATION INTO YOUR SERVER FOR MORE INFO.  JUST A THOUGHT.........
MY DAUGHTER HAS POSTURAL ORTHOSTATIC TACHYCARDIA SYNDROME AND NEUROCARDIOGENIC SYNCOPE.

GOOD LUCK!!  I HOPE YOU FIND A SOLUTION SOON!!