Symptoms in newborns may include:

• Delayed growth
• Failure to gain weight normally during childhood
• No bowel movements in first 24 to 48 hours of life
• Salty-tasting skin

Symptoms related to bowel function may include:

• Belly pain from severe constipation
• Increased gas, bloating, or a belly that appears swollen (distended)
• Nausea and loss of appetite
• Stools that are pale or clay colored, foul smelling, have mucus, or that float
• Weight loss

Symptoms related to the lungs and sinuses may include:

• Coughing or increased mucus in the sinuses or lungs
• Fatigue
• Nasal congestion caused by nasal polyps
• Recurrent episodes of pneumonia. Symptoms in someone with cystic fibrosis include:
  • Fever
  • Increased coughing
  • Increased shortness of breath
  • Loss of appetite
  • More sputum
• Sinus pain or pressure caused by infection or polyps

Symptoms that may be noticed later in life:

• Infertility (in men)
• Repeated inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis)
• Respiratory symptoms

A blood test is available to help detect CF. The test looks for variations in a gene known to cause the disease. Other tests use to diagnose CF include:

• Immunoreactive trypsinogen (IRT) test is a standard newborn screening test for CF. A high level of IRT suggests possible CF and requires further testing.
• Sweat chloride test is the standard diagnostic test for CF. A high salt level in the patient's sweat is a sign of the disease.

Other tests that identify problems that can be related to cystic fibrosis include:

• Chest x-ray or CT scan
• Fecal fat test
• Lung function tests
• Measurement of pancreatic function
• Secretin stimulation test
• Trypsin and chymotrypsin in stool
• Upper GI and small bowel series

Images

Clubbing

Clubbed fingers

Postural drainage

Cystic fibrosis

Previous Section

Cystic fibrosis Overview

Next Section

Cystic fibrosis Treatment

Review Date: 05/01/2011
Reviewed By: David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc., and Denis Hadjiliadis, MD, Assistant Professor of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA.

A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org)