Hi Lisa,
I don't think brown stool, in and of itself, would be a cause for concern.
This would be in a well baby who is thriving and the stools are more brown
than yellow. I often tell moms that the stools will become yellowish, but
that they might be brownish, orangish, or greenish but usually some yellow
to them and seedy, curdy.
So if the color is more that of transitional stool (green or melted
chocolate color is what we usually see), it might be that baby hasn't
passed all meconium and that is a sign of poor milk intake. I can't
remember how old your case infant was, and I don't know how long that
process would take, but I wouldn't think more than a week. Even with poor
intake. Because what I usually see is a small amount of stools, then the
baby doesn't stool for a day, and the last one was still meconium or dark.
Now, like others have posted, the color could be related to blood in the
stool, or some other pathology, so with any pathology that would contribute
to poor wt gain, then the stool color is a sign.
So what I am saying is that the brownish color (again I am picturing some
yellow with seedy but more brown) in a thriving infant would not concern
me, but I definitely would tell the pedi if it is a part of a bigger
picture of a poor gaining baby, or if it is a very unusual color,
consistency, or smell.  For example, if you search for infant stools and
cystic fibrosis, you will find some qualities that could indicate CF. And
there I would say, "this may not be an issue, but this baby's stools seem
much different than the usual stools of a breastfed baby, so I felt I
should mention it to you."
Laurie Wheeler RN MN IBCLC
MISSISSIPPI USA

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