patient story

patient name: Landon Climmons

age: 5

seen in: gastroenterology

providers: Courtney McIntosh, CPNP-PC, April Mathews, MD

When he was just 2 or 3 years old, Taylor Climmons recalls her son, Landon, running random fevers several times a month, with his cheeks turning bright red. Apart from the frequent fevers and flushed cheeks, Landon showed no other signs of illness.  

With every unexplainable fever, Taylor grew concerned and took Landon to his pediatrician several times, and each time he was diagnosed with a viral infection. Taylor’s instincts told her this was more than a viral infection, so she began documenting the frequency of Landon’s fevers. 

Taylor shared her documentation with Landon’s pediatrician, who became concerned that Landon may have PFAPA (periodic fever, aphthous stomatitis, pharyngitis, adenitis). PFAPA is a syndrome that causes repeated episodes of fever, mouth sores, sore throat and swollen lymph nodes. Labs were ordered to determine if the pediatrician’s suspicions were correct. But when the results came in, other than a few markers being slightly abnormal, Landon was once again diagnosed with a viral infection. 

“My family and I became very concerned and not convinced of the viral infection”, said Taylor. “Landon’s aunt has Crohn’s disease and some of his symptoms began to mimic what our family experienced with her.” 

Despite the family history, Taylor was told that Landon was too young for Crohn’s disease. 

from fevers to diagnosis 

As time went on, Landon continued to experience random body aches, fevers, unusual bowel movements and burning, itchy eyes that made it hard for him to go outside. 

By late June 2024, things took a turn for the worse. Landon began having blood in his stool and he was using the bathroom multiple times a day. Landon continued to bleed for two weeks with every bowel movement he had. His bowel movements were so frequent at this point that they would wake him out of his sleep at night.  

This time, Taylor took matters into her own hands and made Landon an appointment in the gastroenterology clinic at Dayton Children’s Hospital.  

At Landon’s first gastroenterology appointment, he and his family met nurse practitioner, Courtney McIntosh, who listened carefully to Taylor’s concerns. Once again, Landon's symptoms and lab work results were believed to reveal a parasitic or viral infection. However, two weeks later, Courtney ordered more testing, including a colonoscopy.

On August 7, 2024, Landon had his colonoscopy. The procedure confirmed what his family suspected all along – Landon was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease. 

Crohn’s disease is one of the inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), that can affect any part of the digestive tract, from your mouth to your anus. The inflammation in Crohn’s can skip around the intestine, meaning a patient might have healthy areas of intestine between inflamed patches. 

individualized treatment for Crohn’s disease 

Taylor’s persistence finally paid off and she felt like they were on the right path to getting Landon the care he needed. 

Landon was hospitalized after his colonoscopy due to the significance of his symptoms. During his inpatient stay, Landon and his family met Dr. April Mathews, pediatric gastroenterologist. Because of Landon’s young age, he was considered to have a rare form of IBD called VEO-IBD (very early onset-inflammatory bowel disease). VEO-IBD doesn’t typically respond to traditional IBD treatments, so Dr. Mathews shared her recommendations for an individualized approach to Landon’s care. 

With Landon’s family in agreement with Dr. Mathew’s recommendations, his treatment began, and his symptoms almost immediately improved.  

“We are very thankful for the team at Dayton Children’s, especially Dr. April Mathews,” shared Taylor. “They have been so caring and amazing to work with.” 

back to being a kid: Landon’s bright future 

The individualized approach to Landon’s treatment for Crohn’s disease has been incredibly successful. Over the course of two months, he has been able to wean off some of his medications that were prescribed to improve his symptoms, and he is getting to a place where he can extend the time between his infusion therapy and time at the hospital. 

Throughout their experience with Dayton Children’s, the thing that has mattered most to Landon’s family is that his caregivers listened to their concerns and showed compassion for Landon no matter if he was admitted for a hospital stay or just in for a routine appointment. 

Now that Landon’s Crohn’s disease is being managed and his symptoms are under control, he can fully enjoy the things he loves – whether he’s playing video games, practicing Kung Fu or simply being the energetic, adventurous kid, his family knows and adores.