Cystic Fibrosis - Signs & Symptoms

Note: Specific signs and symptoms vary depending on the severity of the disease in each child and age

Signs & Symptoms:
1. Blockage of intestines (meconium ileus) – meconium becomes so thick it can’t move through
the intestines (tarry, greenish-black stools normally passed by infants in the first day or two
after birth)
2. Failure to thrive (weight loss and malnutrition)
3. Steatorrhea (bulky and greasy stools)
4. Salty taste to the skin – higher amounts of sodium chloride in their sweat
5. Frequent respiratory infections
6. Thick sputum – parents tend to overlook this because young children tend to swallow their
sputum rather than cough it up
7. Coughing or wheezing
8. Frequent chest and sinus infections with recurring pneumonia or bronchitis
9. Polyps in the nasal passages
10. Rectal prolapse – protrusion of part of the rectum through the anus caused by stools that
are difficult to pass or by frequent coughing
11. Blockage in the bowel
12. Displacement of one part of the intestine into another part of the intestine (intussusception)
in children older than 4
13. Clubbing of the fingertips and toes
14. Enlargement of the right side of the heart
15. Pancreatitis
16. Diabetes related to chronic pancreatitis
17. Cirrhosis of the liver due to inflammation or obstruction of the bile ducts
18. Male infertility (obstructive azoospermia)

Sources:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/cystic-fibrosis/DS00287/DSECTION=2
http://www.labtestsonline.org/understanding/conditions/cystic_fibrosis-2.html

(Posted by: Vivian)