chronic vomiting

My 30 y.o. son has had chronic vomiting since he was about 10. He has had every test the gi docs can think of, some more than once. They just can't find anything wrong, so they started him on antidepressants, he is sick again. This happens about once a month for 1 wk. The poor guy just can,t live this way. No obvious trigger can we come up with. Any ideas?

[Kevin Pho, MD]

There are many reasons for chronic nausea, including any anatomical abnormality, ulcers, gall bladder disease, pancreatitis, gastric stasis, inflammation of the upper digestive tract - just to name a few.  To completely evaluate for the GI causes, make sure an upper endoscopy, 24-hr pH study, abdominal ultrasound, esophageal motility studies, and gastric emptying studies were performed.

Once the GI causes have been excluded, you may want to consider a neurological evaluation, since various central nervous disorders can lead to chronic vomiting.  An MRI of the brain would be a good place to start.

Followup with your personal physician is essential.

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

Thanks,
Kevin, M.D.