What We Treat

Conditions We Treat

Get a diagnosis and treatment for nearly every pediatric GI condition, from food intolerances to chronic complex digestive disorders. We treat:

• Celiac disease – A digestive disorder in which gluten causes the immune system to damage the small intestine
• Esophagitis – Inflammation or swelling of the esophagus, including eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE)
• Failure to thrive – A condition in which a child’s weight or rate of weight gain is significantly less than their peers’
• Feeding and swallowing disorders (dysphagia) – Difficulty gathering, sucking, chewing or moving food down the throat
• Functional gastrointestinal disorders (FGIDs) – Persistent, recurring symptoms that occur due to abnormal sensitivity of the nerves of the digestive tract
  
  • Abdominal pain
  • Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) – Abdominal pain associated with diarrhea and/or constipation
  • Nausea and/or vomiting, including cyclic vomiting syndrome (CVS)
  • Constipation or diarrhea
• Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) – Stomach contents leak back into the esophagus, causing heartburn and other symptoms
• Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infections – Bacterial stomach infection that causes gastritis and ulcers and can lead to stomach cancer
• Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), including ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease – Chronic inflammation of the digestive tract
• Lactose intolerance – Inability to digest foods containing lactose, the sugar found in milk and dairy products
• Liver diseases
  
  • Biliary atresia – Bile gets trapped in the liver due to a lack of bile duct openings
  • Hepatitis – Inflammation of the liver; may be caused by a virus or an autoimmune condition
• Newborn jaundice – High levels of bilirubin, a substance created when the body replaces red blood cells, make your baby’s skin look yellow
• Intestinal insufficiency – Part of the small intestine is missing, making it difficult for the body to absorb enough fluid and nutrients; sometimes referred to as short bowel syndrome

Treatments

GI Services & Treatments

Take advantage of an extensive range of consultations and procedures, including:

• Endoscopy procedures – Allow doctors to see and treat your child’s digestive tract without surgery
  • Upper endoscopy (EGD) – Looks at the esophagus, stomach, and the first part of the small intestine (the duodenum)
  • Colonoscopy – Looks inside the entire large intestine (colon)
  • Flexible sigmoidoscopy – Looks inside the lower end of the large intestine
  • Foreign body retrieval – Removes a potentially dangerous item from a child’s esophagus or stomach
  • Esophageal dilation – Stretches a narrowed area of the esophagus
  • Sclerosis of esophageal varices – Controls bleeding by injecting medicine into a large vein in the esophagus
  • Banding of esophageal varices – Controls bleeding by placing a tiny ring on a large vein in the esophagus

• Oral motor and behavioral feeding therapy
• Nutrition consultations and management
• Esophageal pH test – Diagnoses acid reflux by measuring acid that backs up into the esophagus from the stomach
• Hydrogen breath testing – Measures hydrogen in a breath to determine how well your child’s body breaks down lactose (milk sugar) or sucrose (table sugar)
• Medications
• Feeding tubes and total parenteral nutrition (TPN) – Delivers nutrition and hydration through a tube or IV (TPN) to children who can’t or shouldn’t eat
• Biopsy – Removes a small piece of tissue so it can be examined for signs of damage or disease
• GI surgery
• Liver transplant

In collaboration with our adult GI Division we offer:

• Esophageal and anal manometry – Assesses muscle contractions
• Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatogram (ERCP) – Allows a doctor to see and treat the bile system, gallbladder and pancreas

Most pediatric procedures are performed in a dedicated GI suite at N.C. Children’s Hospital. A few procedures are performed in the adult GI center at N.C. Memorial Hospital, which is right next door to the Children’s Hospital.