Please help me figure out what he means - Hot Tummy?

My 4y year old son has been having tummy issues since he was 2 and we cannot figure out what is wrong.

He started complaining daily of tummy aches at 2 years, and despite blood tests, allergy tests, diet trials, stool tests, urine tests, and x-rays, we could find nothing wrong with him. He also started getting hives all over his body every day (which lasted a month and thankfully never came back). I took him to a naturalpath who put him on probiotics and some herbal drops and he got better for quite awhile. Then the tummy aches came back. We repeated all the tests and again found nothing wrong, though the x-rays showed a lot of poop backed up. He was given some powder to help "clean him out" and again he seemed to be doing well. Now 95% of the time if he tells me his tummy hurts I get him to go the bathroom and he will have a poop and feel better. The part that stumps me though is that most of the time he doesn't complain of a tummy ache, he says his tummy is "hot". He will then roll up his shirt and find some sort of cool surface to put his tummy against (usually a pillow, or the tile floor or something) or he will ask for his spiderman rice bag that we keep in the freezer for him. I can't get him to explain this any further than "it feels hot". It does not seem to be heartburn as when I ask him where it is hot he indicates it is hot all over, and I have tried tums but they do nothing. He says it is not painful, just hot, but he is clearly uncomfortable. He is not constipated either, he actually tends to go in the opposite direction if anything, though usually he poops normally.

He just woke up a few minutes ago and the first thing he said to me was that his tummy was hot. I asked him "where" and he said "all over". I asked him "on the inside of his tummy or the outside", and he said "outside" (though sometimes when I ask him this his says inside). I asked him if he was hot all over but he said "no just his tummy". I have no idea what this could be or what I can do to help him as I can tell he is really uncomfortable and I hate to see him like this. He gets this "hot tumm" at least once every day and often several times a day. It seems to bug him most first thing in the morning, and right before bed, but it often bugs hin the early afternoon as well. Doesn't seem to be food related either as in the morning his tummy is empty and at bedtime it is mostly full. We have been dealing with this for 2.5 years now, I want to help him feel better :(

The only thing I can think of is something that happened to me a few years ago. My tummy just started aching all the time. Nothing I did could help and I was often sick and had the runs. Blood tests, ultra sounds, you name it they did them and nothing showed. Eventually I became really dehydrated and they put me in hospital on a drip and were going to operate (just to shut me up I think) when they did an CT scan. It showed all of my lymph glands in my abdomen were inflamed and I had mesenteric adonitis - inflammation of the lymph in the abdomen. Well finally they took me seriously, gave me morphine, kept me in hospital for a few days and treated me properly.

My diet was reduced to steamed veges and fruit and I slowly introduced other foods until I worked out what causes the inflammation - other than the original virus. Dairy and high fat will always make me sick so I avoid them now.

It was incredibly painful but the only way I could describe it (and I was an adult) was 'it hurts'. Maybe get that checked out and if it isn't that the CT scan may show up something else just as easily treated.

I feel for your LO, no matter what a sore tummy isn't nice :(

That must be hard for you and your LO.

My DD would often complain of a hot stomach but we were able to pinpoint it back to an old insulin pump site where some insulin hadnt been absorbed properly.

Has a doctor ruled out irritable Bowel syndrome (or other related things). My ex had this and would often mention a hot feeling stomach and would usually go for a cold shower to "cool down".

It must be tough dealing with it for so long. Hope you do get some answers soon

Thanks guys, my doctor keeps saying "next time" we will refer him to the pediatrician but then he never does, so I guess I will ask for a referral and see if he has any better ideas. (I live in a small town so the Pediatrician is hard to get into)

Rytha - I am going to google that for more info, never even heard of it before. Tht must have been awful!

cmkm - yeah I am starting to wonder about IBS. I have tummy issues that they cannot figure out either (also triggered by a virus when I was in university) and so they said it is probably IBS (though mine is kept under control with diet -I think I have GERD as well) and so it is quite possible he has it too. I have never had a "hot tummy" though and no one else seems to have heard of it before.

I would give him a worm treatment too. Don't go the Combantrim-1 but the green one which treats all worms.

If that doesn't work I would then be getting the dr's to do more tests. When I'm in pain in my stomach the cool helps with the pain, and I do exactly the same that he does. Look for something cool.

He did have a stool test and they checked for worms, but we were told he was clear

my 2 yr old tell sme his tummy is hot and he needs a nappy he then does a poo when he is sick and has the runs he will do eaclty what your son does complain its hot then lean againts the fridge I jsut thought it was cute should I be worried now too LOL

HOw often does he do it Rach? Is it just when he is sick or is it when he has to poop. SO frustrating as it has been going on for so long and his Dr. has not found anything wrong (thankfully nothing serious seems to be wrong, but that doesn't help me make him feel better)