Sudden Weight Loss in Children

[Jatrey1994]

I have a 14 year old son who has lost over 70 pounds in the last 7 months.  He is almost 6 feet tall and weighs 147 lbs.  Twenty of  the 70+ pounds have occured in the last 4 weeks.  He does not appear to be dieting, but continues to lose weight. He also complains that he is tired when he rides his bike or does any type of physical activity.  Can you tell me what types of illness in children could cause rapid weight loss?  Could it be thyroid disease or anemia?  My husband and me both have thyroid disease.  About four years ago it was also discovered that my son has a rare platelet disorder.  Could this have an affect on his weight or metabolism?  I have made an appointment with his doctor, but was curious to find what may be causing this.  Thank You.

[Deanna L Aftab Guy, MD]

Start with your pediatrician, get labs, history, exam done, step out and let your ped do further talking with him, there are increasing cases of restrictive eating disorders in boys, this may be needed in our differential diagnosis, yes, thyroid too needs to be addressed, if overactive we will lose weight but also have many other symptoms. With platelet disorder he may be set up for other autoimmune disorders, so lets look at his thyroid functions and if off, have him seen by peds endo, also celiac is important to consider as well, have them also consider diabetes, urine, blood tests and overall history and physical are in order.