[i3ai3ydanny]

So Danny got a stomach bug that lasted for 12 hours...and he lost an entire pound. > He is not 29 pounds even again. :'( I liked having that three in front of a number for his weight...even if the second number was a 0... It has been 3 weeks since the bug and he is back up to 29.4 so far. I hope he gains again... He had flatlined for a while and is not almost off the charts again...

On a side note. Even if he had not gotten sick these are the stats. In August he was in the 38th% if he still weighed 30 pounds he would now be in the 15th%. Is that not a cause for concern no matter how much weight he had gained in the past year? Danny's GI had told me in Oct that since he had gained 10 pounds in the past 12 months (Oct 09 he weighed 21 pounds, April 10 he weighed 29...you can see the progress since then...) that we shouldn't worry about the short-term stumbling block and that he will likely pick up growth again when his body feels like it needs to. Is this reasonable? Should I accept that as a reasonable answer if he says it again at Danny's surgery? I don't understand why he should have slacked off that much to the point of dropping over 20% on the percentile charts... Any tips are appreciated...

[BusyMom4]

I think you should accept that as a good answer... for now. The fact that Danny gained 10 pounds in a year is amazing. The fact that he got sick and lost weight causing him to drop percentiles is normal; and now that he is older it will take him longer to gain it back. Now, if he is unable to recover 6 months from now then it may be time to become concerned again. Between 3 and 4 years kids only gain about 4 pounds, so at this age growth really starts to slow down and it makes it harder to keep up with the ftt child.

If it makes you feel any better, Danny is only 2 months older than my youngest son, but my DS is 28 pounds and not ftt. My DD who is ftt was just 24 pounds at Dannys age and 26 pounds when she turned 4. She will be 6 years old in 2 months and now weighs in at a whopping 34.0 pounds. It doesnt put her on the charts, but Im thrilled that she is going up.... ever slowly, but going up never the less!!

I know it is so so SO frustrating when you worked so hard to get that weight ON them then to see it just fall off. I swear, what takes 6 months to put on comes off in just 48 hours of being sick. That is how my DD is anyway. Then its another several months trying to get it back on. It is a vicious cycle and the older they get the harder it is because the longer it takes to gain weight.

Anyway, I know Dannys surgery date is approaching so I will be thinking of you. Be sure and let me know how it goes.

[i3ai3ydanny]

I may have stated it wrong...he didn't drop % because of the illness. The 38% to 15% was BEFORE he got sick...not after. Now is in in the 3-5% due to the lost pound. The measure of weight isn't what worries me either. It is the lack of change. The 9 of the 10 pounds were gained between Oct 09 and April 10. Since April 10 he has only gained a pound...which is what he lost... and that had been the same...29lb with no height change since August. Since August he weighed the same...to the ounce according to the ped. Absolutely no change through our sick visits, well visits, nada. No up and down...just a flat line. How long should I go on with the flat line before I get concerned I guess should be my question... I just don't want to wait until sliding backwards and losing weight again before he gets help. Also, he is technically no longer FTT as they made a diagnosis as to the cause of the "malnutrition." He has an enzyme deficiency...which the retest on 12/27...which caused him not to digest fats or proteins and treating that with enzyme supplements should have solved everything. It hasn't...

I don't know if that makes sense or not but that is what has been cycling through my head for the last few weeks...

[BusyMom4]

You know, it sounds you are genuinely concerned and moms intuition is not generally wrong. I did misunderstand you, you say he has not grown in weight or height since April and I have to agree that is cause for concern. I agree with you, its best to find out why he has stalled out before he starts back sliding.