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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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What Causes Sudden Weight Gain And Facial Puffiness In A Child?

My 11 year old son is sleeping all the time. he falls asleep at school, in the car, etc. He is also easily aggitated. He is sleeping about 12-15 hours a day. He also is gaining weight and his face looks puffy. I took him to the Dr 6 weeks ago and they thought he had mono. The test came back negative. They also took blood but I havent heard back from them about the results. Im really worried about him.
Fri, 8 Jan 2016
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General & Family Physician,  's  Response
Hi,
Thanks for writing to HCM.
I understand your concern.
History of facial puffiness and gain in weight with sleeping for 12 to 15 hours could be caused due to two reasons:
1. Kwashiorkor, which is caused due to nutritional deficiency of dietary intake of proteins.
2. Nephrotic syndrome, due to excretion of proteins (albumin) through kidneys.
The above conditions are associated with protein deficiency in the body, which is known to cause such symptoms.
Both of these are treatable disorders. Kindly get the following investigations done, so that it would be easy to arrive at diagnosis and institute treatment accordingly.
1. Serum Total Protein, Albumin levels and Albumin/Globulin (A/G) ratio.
2. 24 hours Urine Protein Estimation.
Kindly consult Paediatrician with the report for proper diagnosis and management.
Hope the information provided would be helpful.
All the best.
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What Causes Sudden Weight Gain And Facial Puffiness In A Child?

Hi, Thanks for writing to HCM. I understand your concern. History of facial puffiness and gain in weight with sleeping for 12 to 15 hours could be caused due to two reasons: 1. Kwashiorkor, which is caused due to nutritional deficiency of dietary intake of proteins. 2. Nephrotic syndrome, due to excretion of proteins (albumin) through kidneys. The above conditions are associated with protein deficiency in the body, which is known to cause such symptoms. Both of these are treatable disorders. Kindly get the following investigations done, so that it would be easy to arrive at diagnosis and institute treatment accordingly. 1. Serum Total Protein, Albumin levels and Albumin/Globulin (A/G) ratio. 2. 24 hours Urine Protein Estimation. Kindly consult Paediatrician with the report for proper diagnosis and management. Hope the information provided would be helpful. All the best.