After a long battle since Easter to get our concerns about him passing blood listened to, and all the appointments and tests described in previous posts, we went to St Helier for his colonoscopy results etc. He had a very positive diagnosis of crohns disease, which is what we were afraid of. This is sort of an autoimmune problem causing inflammation and damage to the gut i think. If left untreated it can cause poor growth from malabsorbtion and the damage can create a need for surgery and bowel obstruction problems. Therefore the treatment used aims to get the disease into 'remission' and keep it there. This is done in this age group by a food free diet whereby he has only elemental formula, which allows his gut a break and chance to heal, and also a mild immunosupressant (actually the same as Josh has just been prescribed) possibly also a steroid depending on how he responds. So on Monday he will go back to the ward and have an ng tube tube fitted as he is expected to not tolerate enough of the feed (it tastes foul) and this will be for the next 6 weeks, so effecting all our socialising for this period and then beyond as they slowly reintroduce all foods.
http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Crohns-disease/Pages/Introduction.aspx
is a quick explanation. He is very young to have it but we do think it might have been caught early and hope it will therefore lessen the worst effects???
http://www.rch.org.au/kidsinfo/fact_sheets/Nasogastric_tube_insertion_of/
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