Parasites, an Adoption Series: Returning Home

You have made it home with your little one but you are just beginning your journey, especially if you have a child who just exited an orphanage or if you are starting to not feel well.

When we traveled to Russia we actually had a family doctor who was from Poland who MADE us take Cipro everyday we were there. I think that saved us from some of the issues AJ had or from some of the things we could have picked up.

When returning home with your child the first thing that needs to be done is a visit to the doctor, of course. At this visit he/she MUST be tested for ova/parasites as well as for bacteria. A complete list is at A Healthy Me and EVERY child should have EVERY test even if non-symptomatic.

We actually fired our first pediatrician because he flat out refused to test for H Pylori. I requested he test for it after AJ remained symptomatic 6 months after returning home. He had tested negative for every ova/parasite but had ALL of the H Pylori symptoms. He even had black tarry stools, which can be consistent with either constipation or H Pylori. In his case it was actually both. He was in so much pain from the infection that he just would not go anymore…making everything 10 times worse.

AJ developed severe gastritis that lingers today (he was 2.5 when the H Pylori was found and treated). Our GI told us that it was one of the worst cases he had ever seen and it was one of the youngest patients he had ever had with H Pylori. A year later he still had inflammation and gastritis.

He is doing much better today (age 5) but still has issues with the constipation. The H Pylori also caused a lifetime of lactose intolerance by breaking off all of his villi, the brush border in the intestines that break down lactose.

Next Monday will be the next installment of this series.