4 year old has excessive sweating

[AMoulton]

My 4 yr old daughter experiences excessive sweating on her forehead and around her face. She has Iron deficiency and anytime I ask her Dr about it, he says she's sweating because she has iron deficiency and her heart has to work harder. My husband and I have been doing some reading and what we've read is that excessive sweating can cause Iron deficiency, it is not a symptom of it. I'm worried something more serious may be going on. Any suggestions??

[mamawith2girls]

See, right there, with the abdominal and facial swelling....that is important to mention. If you can, document what you can with video and pictures!!! This is EXTREMELY helpful, trust me. Good luck!!!

[AMoulton]

We are in the Maritime's, And are very secluded. Specialists come in every 6 months or so. Another option would be to fly somewhere else in the province, but it is extremely expensive to fly out of here, and to have to do so on a regular basis is not good.

Our daughter does take 5ml of Fer-in-Sol a day. Her levels came up but she still takes it to be on the cautious side. And she still sweats alot, and sometimes when she sweats, she bloats up, her face and belly. Our family Dr. obviously has not referred our daughter to a Pediatrician, since she was diagnosed a Year ago, and we have not had any appointments. When our Dr. gets back from vacation, we'll be going to see him again and will bombard him with questions, and will make sure he gets a referral sent.

We haven't had to worry about the heat here, it's been pretty cool and rainy. We've only had a handful of hot days. From researching this online, it seems there could be something else going on, and I just want to make sure everything has been covered. Thanks so much for your input, it's greatly appreciated.

[mamawith2girls]

Which part of Canada are you from? I'm on the East coast, and it usually takes about 6 weeks to get into a pediatrician here. The good thing is that the pediatrician will continue to follow your little one, and will provide the primary care for the issue of concern.
I can completely relate to the difficulty in finding a GOOD doctor. The best advice I can give you is to research what you can and write down all your questions so  you don't forget or feel pressured to "hurry up". Overworked doctors are good at rushing.

How are you and your GP treating the iron deficiency? A simple multivitamin does not have enough iron. Is your daughter on an iron supplement?
I can tell you that my 4 year old daughter also sweats a lot, particularly at night. She does not wear pajamas. She is only borderline deficient, so we are only using a regular multivitamin and serving iron-rich foods. There are a ton of reasons why a child might sweat, but saying it is due to iron deficience is lazy, without taking a detailed history and at least considering other causes. PARTICULARLY given the extreme heat this year. Hydration is really important.

Does your child have any growth concerns? Any other symptoms? Any little thing can help to push you along to a pediatrician, even if it is only parental concern. It generally does not take years to see a pediatrician if there is a real health concern, but it does take some time for non-urgent cases. Try to make note of when she is sweating the most....after exercise, play, at night, what the temperature of the day is....does her body temperature drop, what is her heart rate doing, is she out of breath.....or is she sweating while relaxing watching a movie....these are all questions your doctor should be asking.
If you are genuinely concerned, then please be persistent with your doctor. Sometimes there are cancellations and you can get in sooner to a pediatrician. Good luck.

[margypops]

I am sorry to hear this and I know its hard to find a doctor its the same in England where my family live ,many do come into the US for help  .It appears excessive sweating can be a cause of Iron deficiency, and also B12 deficiency so I agree a second opinion would be a good idea .Get her on the waiting list as soon as possible and do some research ,put it into the search engine  there is a lot online about it .,

[AMoulton]

Thanks so much for replying. It's nice to know we aren't alone with this. I'm in Canada, and I live in a remote area where the healthcare is questionable. We do have one of the best Dr's, but he is so swamped, getting in to see him is like pulling teeth. We can get a referral to see a pediatrician if we ever get in to see him again, but it could be months or even years before she gets to see them. I've looked at going out of province, but not getting any luck so far. I will have to ask about seeing a hematologist, if that's even possible here. A lot of the stuff is covered by our Government, but it doesn't help when you can't get in to see anybody! I had an indicator of Celiac show up in a blood test I had done a while ago, but further tests came back negative. But I will ask them to test her too. Thanks for the comments, I will definitely look into them!

[melipops]

Hi, We are going through a similar thing at the moment. Has your daughter gone to a haematologist we are seeking a refferal for that today? Has she seen the paediatrician? If you are not happy with the answers you are recieving please go seek help elsewhere. Your childrens health is so important. We are off to the drs this morning to demand some more answers. Iron deficiency can be a symptom of many things we are currently looking at finding out why. Caeliacs is a big cause but hard to find out about. It's more tests for us until we find out. Hope this helps good luck