Gastro - 4month old

[mrscricket]

DS and i seem to have picked up a bug over the weekend. I am sick as a dog this morning and DS has done 3 extremly runny poos in 1 hour (this is a baby that we are lucky if he poos once every two days normally). Is there anything i should be doing for him? I just gave him a bit of Brauers Stomach Calm, although i usually give this to him when he hasnt pooed for a couple of days and it makes him go. He is formula fed.
Will check for replies in between toilet stops..

[Arimeh]

Hey Mrsdaisy,
Aricyn is doing the same thing at the moment - since Saturday - must be something going around australia. I was worried last night about him, but he slept fine (woke up with my cold this morning, poor thing) and has done one runny poo this morning. I'm just keeping up his fluid intake with lots of water, and taking it day by day. He doesn't have a temp, but I'm keeping an eye on it.
Just wanted to let you know that you are not alone!!!

[Alan]

Hi Mrsdaisy
If he is doing 3 runny poos in 1 hour then you should perhaps take him to the doctor. Baby's can dehydrate very quickly.

[kungfubecca]

Has he had 4 month Vaccinations yet.

Side effect of the rotavirus is gastro like symptoms. But with that frequency I would def be taking him to see the doc.

[dee73]

As the others said, take him to a dr. My ds had gastro at 5 months, started with runnies, then soon he was vomiting and listless, high temp, dehydrated and had to be hospitalised overnight. It can progress very quickly in their little systems.

[Schmickers]

You need to monitor his wet nappies. The first signs of dehydration you will see are a reduction in the number of wees he is doing. The other symptoms - listlessness, dry skin, dry mouth, etc. - come later.

Babies with diarrhoea don't tend to dehydrate as quickly, though, as babies with vomiting. Make sure you keep his fluids up - plenty of formula feeds. If you become worries, you can also feed him Gastrolyte, which you can find from a chemist - it is mixed up in water and contains some essential minerals that keep them hydrated if for some reason they are not tolerating formula.

If you are concerned he is becomign dehydrated, then you should go to your nearest emergency department, or to your GP, but only if they can see you straight away.