Like most women, you may be worried if your newborn is not pooing. While chances are your baby may be constipated, it is common for infants to go for days without pooing, and it is perfectly normal, provided your baby is happy and well. Be sure to take your newborn to a consultant neonatologist or newborn pediatrician if you notice something wrong with your baby. Read on to learn more about constipation in newborns and how to treat it.
Constipation In Newborn
According to the North America Society of Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition (NASPGHAN), constipation refers to a delay or difficulty passing stool, present for at least two weeks, and associated with significant distress.
However, in newborns and children, the duration is longer – up to 8 weeks, according to the Paris Consensus on Childhood Constipation Terminology (PACCT). In addition, constipation should be accompanied by at least two of the listed symptoms.
- Reduced frequency of pooing to less than three times per week.
- Incontinence of stool more than once per week.
- Development of behavior of withholding stool.
- Pain with passing stool.
- Passing large volumes of stool that clog the toilet.
During the examination of a constipated baby, a consultant neonatologist or a newborn pediatrician may also feel a fecal mass in the abdomen or rectum of your baby.
How To Treat Constipation In Newborn
There are many ways of treating your baby’s constipation. Here are simple home remedies to relieve your newborn’s constipation.
- Gently move your newborn’s legs while cycling while lying on their back. Massaging your newborn’s abdomen using your fingertip in circular movements may also ease constipation.
- Give your infant a warm bath. This relieves straining by relaxing the abdominal muscles.
- Ensure your baby stays hydrated by breastfeeding most often. A newborn pediatrician may also recommend giving a constipated baby a small amount of fluid, such as water.
Sometimes constipation in a newborn occurs due to an underlying medical condition requiring the baby to be attended to by a consultant neonatologist. These conditions include:
- Hirschsprung disease
- Pediatric hypercalcemia, and hypokalemia
- Pediatric hypothyroidism
- Anorectal malformation such as imperforation.
The above conditions may cause severe constipation associated with vomiting, swollen tummy, loss of weight or poor weight gain, and severe abdominal pain.
Your newborn pediatrician or consultant neonatologist may recommend surgery, colon evacuation, and the use of laxatives if your newborn’s constipation is due to a medical condition. Contact Dr. Olfa, she is a consultant neonatologist in Dubai, UAE. She will attend to your baby’s health needs.
Sources
- Pediatric Constipation Treatment & Management
- Constipation in babies
- Constipation: Infant
