What Causes Unusually Foul Body Odour In A Child?

Posted on Mon, 20 Jul 2015

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Mon, 20 Jul 2015 Answered on

Mon, 10 Aug 2015 Last reviewed on

Question : My grandkids' cousin, as a baby, male, had feces that smelled abnormally bad, even off formula. He has had a strong, all-over, musty body odor from toddler-hood until now. He is now six years old and does not go unbathed. I've never encountered a similar smell in a child. Hormones? Food allergies? Can anything be done to reduce the odor?

Answered by Dr. Diptanshu Das (42 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
He needs to be screened for phenylketonuria.

Detailed Answer:
Thanks for asking on HealthcareMagic.

Your grandkid's cousin's baby could be having some sort of metabolic disorder like Phenylketonuria. This condition is characterized by Hyperphenylalaninemia which is responsible for the musty odor. The first thing that you need to do is to confirm the diagnosis after getting a heel-prick test or Guthrie test done. If that is the case, the treatment is to restrict the intake of PKU diet but more can be commented upon after the test is done.

The following links would be useful to you:
http://XXXXm/article/945180-overview
http://XXXX/947781-treatment

Regards

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar