Hi Alicia, I have definitely seen some patients who have transferred their
care to me and the old records show excellent weight gain when nursing
despite infrequent stools. Perhaps some of these babies have extra long
colons, as described by one gastroenterologist to me. But in your child's
case, I would keep hirshsprungs in the back of my mind...it probably would
take longer to diagnose because with hirshsprungs the colon is narrowed,
and breastfed stools are more likely to intermittently pass that abm
stools. If when the baby stools it is very thin, I would be suspicious, and
also look for enlargment of abd girth or palpation of any abd masses(ie
megacolon). Interesting case, and I agree with you that it is not the norm.
If the child is gaining well, I would doubt that calories are the
issue.-Anne Eglash