Daughter having severe stomach pains for four months and getting no help, treated for h.pylori but what next?

[Liverlady5]

Hi I would like some advice about my daughter who has been getting stomach pains for four months, we have had lots of different tests and medications, but after a stool sample found she had the h.pylori bacteria she was treated with antibiotics and another sample a week later showed it had gone, but she’s still getting severe cramps and not sure what to do next as the hospital are saying to see how she goes, she currently takes ranitidine and Alverine 3 times a day but has to take paracetamol 3-4 times a day most days to help with the pain and we’re getting very concerned for her. Can anyone help please?

[weegmack]

How old is your daughter? Are you in the UK? I’m so sorry you’re daughter is going through this. I’m a mum too and we would just do anything to make them feel better. What treatment was she given for the h-pylori? Are the severe cramps there all the time and where abouts does she feel the pain? Xxx

[Liverlady5 in reply to weegmack]

She is 11 and we are in the uk, she was given 2 antibiotics to take for a week with omeprazole first thing of a morning, the pain is pretty much constant and around the stomach area, we are at such a loss with what to do next, thanks for your reply.

[weegmack in reply to Liverlady5]

Oh poor wee soul. How awful for all of you. I know how ridiculous the waits are for gastro just now. Though I feel she should be referred to the paediatric dept of your local hospital...that’s often a quicker way in. H-pylori can cause stomach ulcers and sometimes the treatment doesn’t work if the ulcers are well established by the time antibiotics are given. The antibiotics are to get rid of the h-pylori bacteria, not the ulcers themselves.

In my experience, you need to pester your GP. My daughter, 17 now, started with abdominal pain when she was 8. It came out of nowhere and she was so pale and in pain. Her pain was localised to around her belly button and low down in her gut. I was back and forth to the GP many times until I pretty much demanded a referral to the paediatric dept at my local hospital. From there she got scans, bloods and we had the sweet joy of doing a stool sample! Nothing at all came up. Her appendix was fine too. However, they referred her on to a psychologist to help her deal with her pain and it turned out that she was really anxious and suffering with IBS. Over the years we have discovered she can’t tolerate wheat, very fatty foods and red meat.

I know this is different to what your wee girl is suffering, but we really have to stamp our feet if we want things done! It’s also important that she gets some help with possible anxiety....Xxxx

[damiante]

Hello, i had h-pylori as well, i was on antibiotics as well but after i had stomach pain so i had a gastroscopy done and i have peptic ulcer now and i am on losec, feel a little better now, but it's very important what you eat, i hope your daughter feels better

[Liverlady5 in reply to damiante]

This is the problem, the hospital keep saying there’s such a long wait for gastro but won’t refer her but surely she’s gonna have an even longer wait when they eventually have to, I think she needs some further investigation, we haven’t even been given any advice over foods and what to avoid.

[damiante in reply to Liverlady5]

Hello LiverLady, i am so sorry, she is only 11yrs old and have stomach pain, if you live in the uk, can you get a referral to see a gastroenterologist from another doctor, why wait so long, i really hope she feels better

[Eternity78]

Sorry to hear your daughter is suffering ..may i ask why she is given the Ranitidine ??

[Liverlady5 in reply to Eternity78]

To be honest I’m not 100% sure, I thought it was an ulcer at first so I think maybe they have given her it to see if it helps, it did at first but now it seems like nothing helps at all

[weegmack in reply to Eternity78]

Omeprazole is not ranitidine. Omeprazole is the generic term for a different drug entirely. Different side effects too. Xx

[Eternity78 in reply to weegmack]

i didn't mention Omeprazole in my reply as i know it belongs to a different category of drugs called PPI " Proton Pump Inhibitors " ..but they both have the same job of lowering stomach acids but in different mechanism of actions ..the result is the same " Low / Lower stomach acids "

[weegmack in reply to Eternity78]

I know this as I have been on both - but Omeprazole works in a different way to ranitidine. Basically, Omeprazole works deeper than ranitidine, if that makes sense? And yes, you’re right about pain! I used to rake two Nexium a day and started getting pain round my ribs and just feeling grim. Dropped to one and it got better 🥰

[Eternity78]

can you please check with her doctors if they really found an ulcer ? and why they gave her the Ranitidine in the first place ? this drug is supposed to lower acid production in the stomach , but if food is not properly digested due to low stomach acid it can cause pain and cramps too !!

it's also stated in many sites that it can cause abdominal pain as a side effect !

So, I would suggest to check again with her doctors if she really needed the Ranitidine and why ??

[Liverlady5 in reply to Eternity78]

They originally gave her omeprazole to take but it was giving her more pain and at this time the doctor and myself were both convinced the pain was something to do with an ulcer, as she had a previous injury a year before and had took a lot of imbruprofen for a long period of time. As the omeprazole was giving her a burning sensation they swapped it for ranitidine which she can handle better, but I’m not 100% sure as to why she still takes it, we’ve just been advised to.