What causes running nose and distended belly having diagnosed with protein intolerance?
Patient: Hi, I have a 10.5mth old infant who has been diagnosed with Multiple Food Protein Intolerance. He is on special formula Elecare and seems to only tolerate Rice Cereal and Pears but he still has a constant runny nose and distended belly. He has acid reflux as well which has since lessened on special formula but I was wondering what could be causing the runny nose and distended belly still. Thanks Doctor: Hi....by what you say I feel that it could be a common cold (if the duration is short) and allergic rhinitis (if the duration is long). The runny nose is not related to the multiple food protein intolerance, but distended belly is related to the protein intolerance. Usually kids with malabsorption can have this. Kindly get him to a pediatrician so that it can be checked if he has any ascites due to low protein (especially albumin) in the body.Regards - Dr. Sumanth