Related Experiment Video

Updated: Aug 29, 2026

Recapitulating Suckling-to-Weaning Transition In Vitro using Fetal Intestinal Organoids
08:15

Recapitulating Suckling-to-Weaning Transition In Vitro using Fetal Intestinal Organoids

Published on: November 15, 2019

Acid secretion from birth to adulthood

John T Boyle1

  • 1Children's Hospital of Greenville Hospital System, University of South Carolina School of Medicine, Greenville, South Carolina, USA. jboyle@ghs.org

Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition
|December 20, 2003
PubMed

Insights

Infants can maintain a low stomach pH from birth, similar to adults by 24 weeks. Further studies are needed to confirm the efficacy and safety of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) in pediatric populations.

Area of Science:

  • Neonatal Physiology
  • Pediatric Gastroenterology

Background:

  • Infants, including premature neonates (24 weeks gestational age), can maintain intragastric pH < 4 from birth.
  • Maximal acid output in infants by 24 weeks approaches adult levels.
  • Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) are effective for reflux in adults.

Purpose of the Study:

  • Evaluate the efficacy of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) in infants and children.
  • Determine appropriate PPI dosing for pediatric populations.
  • Assess potential adverse events of long-term PPI use in children.

Main Methods:

  • Further research is required to establish pediatric PPI efficacy.
  • Clinical trials are needed to determine optimal pediatric dosing.
  • Long-term safety studies are necessary for the pediatric population.

Main Results:

  • Infant gastric acid production is significant early in life.
  • Adult PPI efficacy suggests potential in pediatrics.
  • Data on pediatric PPI use is currently lacking.

Conclusions:

  • Pediatric studies are essential to validate PPI use.
  • Appropriate dosing and safety profiles for infants and children require investigation.
  • Potential side effects like hypergastrinemia and bacterial overgrowth need evaluation in pediatric PPI users.

More Related Videos

Real-Time, Semi-Automated Fluorescent Measurement of the Airway Surface Liquid pH of Primary Human Airway Epithelial Cells10:18

Real-Time, Semi-Automated Fluorescent Measurement of the Airway Surface Liquid pH of Primary Human Airway Epithelial Cells

Published on: June 13, 2019

Extrahepatic Bile Duct and Gall Bladder Dissection in Nine-Day-Old Mouse Neonates06:10

Extrahepatic Bile Duct and Gall Bladder Dissection in Nine-Day-Old Mouse Neonates

Published on: August 23, 2022

Related Concept Videos

Development of Human Microbiota01:30

Development of Human Microbiota

The human microbiota begins developing at birth and undergoes continual change as we age. Infancy marks a critical period of microbial sensitivity, offering a “window of opportunity” during which beneficial microbes help mature the immune system. By age three, children typically develop a more stable and diverse microbial community. Newborns acquire microbes from their immediate environment; vaginal delivery favors maternal vaginal microbes, while cesarean births favor microbes from the skin...
Development of the Oral Microbiota01:28

Development of the Oral Microbiota

The establishment of the oral microbiome begins before birth, challenging the long-held belief that the fetal oral cavity is sterile. The presence of oral microbes such as Streptococcus and Fusobacterium in amniotic fluid suggests that microbial exposure may occur in utero, potentially through translocation from the maternal oral or gastrointestinal tract. This early colonization primes the neonatal immune system and sets the stage for subsequent microbial succession. Maternal health,...
Mucosal Barrier of the Stomach01:25

Mucosal Barrier of the Stomach

The gastric glands contain parietal cells that secrete hydrochloric acid (HCl) for digestion. The cells secrete HCl because it is highly corrosive and essential for breaking down food. To achieve this, they secrete hydrogen and chloride ions into the lumen of the gastric glands, which combine to form HCl.
Within parietal cells, carbonic acid is first formed through the reaction of water and carbon dioxide. The dissociation of carbonic acid releases bicarbonate and hydrogen ions. The bicarbonate...
Accessory Structures of the Skin: Sebaceous Glands01:21

Accessory Structures of the Skin: Sebaceous Glands

A sebaceous gland is a type of oil gland found almost all over the skin ( except palms and soles) and helps lubricate and waterproof the skin and hair. Most sebaceous glands are associated with hair follicles. They generate and excrete sebum, a mixture of lipids, onto the skin surface, thereby naturally lubricating the dry and dead layer of keratinized cells of the stratum corneum, keeping it pliable.
These glands that produce the oils on the skin and hair are holocrine glands. The mature...
Stomach pH Regulation01:21

Stomach pH Regulation

The human body carefully regulates the internal pH of different organs to maintain homeostasis. For example, while the blood plasma maintains a neutral pH of 7, the stomach lumen has an acidic pH of 1.5 - 3.5. The low pH of stomach lumen helps kill pathogens in the food and break down complex food molecules.
The acid-secreting gastric mucosal epithelial cells (parietal cells) lining the stomach lumen maintain the low pH in the lumen. Numerous ion transporters and channels on these parietal...
Hormonal Regulation02:03

Hormonal Regulation

Hormones regulate a significant portion of digestion through activation of the neuroendocrine system. The neuroendocrine system of digestion contains many different hormones all with multiple functions that are both, directly and indirectly, involved in digestion.The ProcessStarting in the stomach, when proteins are detected by sensory neurons of the enteric nervous system, the pyloric gland is stimulated to release gastrin. In turn, this hormone induces the release of histamine. Combined, they...