can young people get PBC?: hi all, looking... - PBC Foundation

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can young people get PBC?

25 Replies

hi all, looking for a little advice. my daughter is 14 and has been complaining for past few months of feeling nauseous and she is itchy.. I have confirmed PBC and thought kids don't get .. does anyone know of young sufferers and am I worrying over nothing ?

thanks in advance for any advice xx

25 Replies

If the pbc is auto immune and people of any age can suffer auto immune issues then it would seem that anyone of any age could be a sufferer.

But no idea if i am correct

RebeccaM profile image
RebeccaM

i am 19 and have it but it started awhile ago maybe when i was around 15 sooo.....

in reply toRebeccaM

thanks Rebecca M. I appreciate your reply. I will get her checked out xx

RebeccaM profile image
RebeccaM in reply to

better safe than sorry :)

jess1990 profile image
jess1990

I was diagnosed at 16, it is unusual for someone this young but it is possible

mb309 profile image
mb309 in reply tojess1990

jess1990--I see your profile picture with 2 sweet babies. Are they yours? If so, did you have healthy, full-term pregnancies even with a pbc diagnosis?

jess1990 profile image
jess1990 in reply tomb309

Hi my eldest is 6 now and she was born a couple of months before I was diagnosed, my son is 4 and he was born quite premature with complications, it was a very upsetting time. Both these pregnancies were before I started the urso medication. I recently had a miscarriage in february at 6 weeks, I stopped taking the medicationas soon as I found out but I guess it was to late. Its very unlikely that I will be able to have any more children as I get ill without the medication but I consider myself blessed and very fortunate to have had lillie and paul early. It might be different for each person but hope this helps.

Anne123_45 profile image
Anne123_45 in reply tojess1990

Hi jess.. My hepatologist says it's perfectly safe to take urso throughout pregnancy. Hope this helps.. He's very knowledgeable. I'm in North East England and he's well known throughout the UK in his field.. He's leading research into the condition. Unless you're on an alternative medicine?

Anne123_45 profile image
Anne123_45 in reply toAnne123_45

Ps you're lucky to have two beautiful kids.. I'm 34 and hoping to have kids.. It's been a struggle.. But I've other conditions as well to complicate things.

jess1990 profile image
jess1990 in reply toAnne123_45

My consultant said that its not advisable while pregnant, ive looked into it myself aswell and everything ive read says it causes problems. Im not sure whats right anymore but thanks anyway

gaby1011 profile image
gaby1011 in reply tojess1990

I know I wouldn't take the chance. Another child could have problems not even related to the urso but you would always think it was the urso. You would blame yourself...

mb309 profile image
mb309 in reply tojess1990

jess1990-- I have a 4 year old boy too (first and only child). Due to a placental abruption he too was born premature at 33.5 weeks. They couldn't find his heartbeat right before they started the emergency cesarean section and he wasn't breathing when was born. He ended up being in the NICU for 20 days. This was also before I was diagnosed and on urso. The little reading I've done says that pbc, itself, is usually the culprit for miscarriages and premature births. My GI doctor, obgyn, and internal medicine doctor all say that urso is safe during pregnancy. (I'd like to have another so I've been asking around.) When is your son's birthday? (Matthew's is 12/6/2009.) Hope to hear from you!

Gioielli5 profile image
Gioielli5

Just be careful about getting her diagnosed so young as this could affect her chances of obtaining a mortgage, life insurance etc.

RebeccaM profile image
RebeccaM in reply toGioielli5

well isnt it better to know if your sick or not....in my opinion a mortgage isnt worth more than a diagnosis. Also I wish i knew way before i was 19 as i have pbc and aih and also itp and my liver is in stage 2...if i got a diagnosis earlier i wouldnt be at 2 ....the sooner you get treatment the better......thats just what i think :S

in reply toRebeccaM

I agree , i hope with all my heart she does not have it, however i would prefer if she did then her health comes above her financial standing :-)

GrittyReads profile image
GrittyReads

What are the grounds of the diagnosis? What exactly do the blood tests say, and has she had ultrasound, fibroscan, etc etc to double check?

Hi GrittyRead,

She hasn't been diagnosed , I have.. I am concerned as she is showing symptoms.

RebeccaM profile image
RebeccaM in reply to

maybe you could spare her some pain and ask can they just look for the AMA cells in a simple blood test. I know not ALL pbc people have AMA cells but atl east its a starting point :)

in reply toRebeccaM

I will speak to my doctor and express my concerns ..thanks

Gioielli5 profile image
Gioielli5

Did not intend to infer that early diagnosis is not important but it may also have other implications. At a PBC Foundation conference a speaker suggested to be cautious as the stigma of cirrhosis can prevent companies offering mortgages and insurance etc. Hopefully with a name change so that cirrhosis is no longer part of the title these problems will not occur. If your daughter is showing symptoms then obviously a diagnosis and getting her on Urso will be to her advantage. Good luck :)

thanks everyone xx

mb309 profile image
mb309

angel74--I have asked my GI doctor about potential child(ren) having PBC because of me and his was response was that he thought it would be highly unlikely that my children would get PBC specifically. He did say they might have a higher chance of getting a different auto-immune disease, especially for a girl.

in reply tomb309

thanks, she has got doctors today and will get checked out...

mb309 profile image
mb309 in reply to

How did her appointment go? Praying that all is well with her.

Mickey1964 profile image
Mickey1964

Children who are in growth sports and pregnant women will have elevated ALP so PBC is one of those concerns you really don't need to have! Autoimmune diseases usually effect adults except for those that are allergy driven and more colon related! Children can be born with defects of the bilinary system and have similar symptoms! This whole thing is complicated and always exception to the rule!

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