Learn what a typical Reflux in children prognosis is at Consumer Reports Health.

Reflux in children

What will happen to my child?

Most children stop bringing up their food by the time they are 1 year to 18 months old.

By the time they are 10 to 12 months of age, only 1 in 30 children is still having problems and bringing up food, compared with nearly a quarter at the age of 6 months.

Source:
Nelson SP, Chen EH, Syniar GM, et al.
Prevalence of symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux during infancy.
Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine. 1997; 151: 569-572.

Source:
Vandenplas Y, Belli D, Benhamou P, et al.
A critical appraisal of current management practices for infant regurgitation: recommendations of a working party.
European Journal of Pediatrics. 1997; 156: 343-357.

It's very rare for these problems to lead to complications. But some children do have problems. These can include:

Source:
Herbst JJ.
Textbook of gastroenterology and nutrition in infancy. 2nd edition.
Raven Press, New York, U.S.A.; 1989.

Bleeding and painful esophagus. The child may cough up blood, and get

anemia
Anemia is when you have too few red blood cells. Anemia can make you get tired and breathless easily. It can also make you look pale. Anemia can be caused by a number of different things, including problems with your diet, blood loss and some diseases.

anemia caused by the loss of blood.
Breathing problems, such as coughing, breathlessness and wheezing.
Failure to thrive, grow and develop at the usual rate for the child's age.

Sources for the information on this page:

Nelson SP, Chen EH, Syniar GM, et al.Prevalence of symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux during infancy.Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine. 1997; 151: 569-572.

Vandenplas Y, Belli D, Benhamou P, et al.A critical appraisal of current management practices for infant regurgitation: recommendations of a working party.European Journal of Pediatrics. 1997; 156: 343-357.

Herbst JJ.Textbook of gastroenterology and nutrition in infancy. 2nd edition.Raven Press, New York, U.S.A.; 1989.

This information was last updated on Nov 06, 2008

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