Flat Spot on Head

sparklingdiamond

When would you start to worry about the flat spot on the back of a baby's head?  DS still has one that doesn't seem to be getting any better.  He is hardly on his back and spends lots of time on his tummy at daycare.  He also sleeps on his side/back. I have brought it up at every doctor appt and she said it does look a little flat, but doesn't seem concerned.  I just really feel like I should've seen some improvement by now.  Daycare has also brought it up to me a couple of times as well.  It even looked slightly worse to me lately :-/

Junebug060609

Bring it up with your pedi again. Ask for a referral with an OT so you can get an evaluation. Speaking as a mama of a plagiocephaly baby (DS), it is MUCH easier to deal with the younger they are...not to mention the skull is more pliable now.

Also, per my son's OT, plag is sooooo much more common since the "back to sleep" campaign began. The stigma that used to come with "flat heads" needs to go away. Now.

dp1320

DS had a slight spot but it is rounding out now. If you are worried, I would get a second opinion.

LunaBug924

I've been worried about this too...I forgot to ask specifically about it at her 6 month check up because I was too distracted by the news she was possibly far-sighted. (Confirmed by pediatric ophthalmologist and she will probably need glasses and a patch starting at 9 months ) 

We go back next week for a booster of her flu vaccine, so I intend to ask about it then. As much as I know it would be better to deal with a helmet now (if it's needed) than to worry about problems later, it just makes me so sad to think of her with glasses, an eye patch, and a helmet. Ugh, mom guilt SUCKS!!!

sparklingdiamond

@LunaBug924  Mom guilt does suck!!  We have his second flu shot on Friday, so I am going to ask about it again.  It's so hard to know what to do!  I have read conflicting things that the helmet helps and also other things that it doesn't.  Which makes it hard to know what to do!

sparklingdiamond

Thanks for the heads up @Haleighkay90.  I do think I remember them mentioning it would just be a nurse visit...

Junebug060609

Speaking as someone who's been down this road with plagiocephaly...let go of the guilt. It's most likely NOT your fault. Plag is waaay more common with the back to sleep campaign and it's often tied into another cause...like torticollis (aka tight neck muscles), which can be brought on by something as simple as womb position, which obviously we can't control.

ho11yday

Push.push.push. if you are concerned. I wish I had pushed more when I noticed ds1's flat spot. Some of it will fade over time add his head continues to grow.

swebber518

Going thru the same issues with my little guy...my ped sent us for a PT eval first & it turned out possibly slight torticollis due to position in utero so we've been doing weekly PT. His plagio has improved, but the ped did go ahead & send us to a craniofacial surgeon for a consult as well to see if a helmet was indicated. They didn't really recommend either way, basically said it the decision was based on personal preference, but I could see how off the measurements were based on the 3D scan that they performed. It was not an easy decision to go ahead with the helmet, but I considered him getting older & I don't want him to be made fun of for having a misshaped head. We pick the helmet up on Monday & I just have to keep telling myself that it's only going to help him & it's very temporary. And definitely the younger it's treated the easier it is to fix. I would keep pushing with your ped or even get a second opinion, don't ignore that maternal gut instinct!!!

sparklingdiamond

She just keeps telling me that his head is uniform and looks symmetrical.  When I look at him, his ears look level.  It's just at the very back of his head.

danabsd

FWIW, both my kids heads are Hey Arnold shaped from the back. Although it may look like flat head it's just genetics here.

IBackBevo

Ods had plagio, but not bad enough for a helmet thankfully. Helmets are very expensive (at least 5k) and most insurance companies don't cover them. It did get much better over time. Also, when their hair gets thicker it is not as noticeable.

britab

My helmet baby wants some May friends!
DD's flat spot didn't go away after 3 months of tummy sleeping...

We got a referral from our pedi after we brought up flat spot at 2 months. She's doing PT for torticollis and got her helmet at 6 months. I trust the opinions of the multiple childrens' hospital docs we have worked with in the Twin Cities.

DD doesn't notice it and there are families dealing with real medical issues, so the helmet is not a big deal.

It's covered by insurance. She got it at 6 months (the ideal time).

sparklingdiamond

@britab She's so cute!

This is a pic of the back of his head, though I guess it's kind of hard to tell from a pic.

ho11yday

@britab omg I'm in love. She's so cute.i need to find a picture of ds1 in his. I swear those helmets frame their faces so adorably.

britab

sparklingdiamond said:

@britab She's so cute!

This is a pic of the back of his head, though I guess it's kind of hard to tell from a pic.

I would definitely get a referral and look into a helmet. Our pedi referred us to a childrens' plastic surgeon for the evaluation. He said at 4 months if it wasn't round it probably wouldn't fix itself. He was right unfortunately.

britab

ho11yday said:

@britab omg I'm in love. She's so cute.i need to find a picture of ds1 in his. I swear those helmets frame their faces so adorably.

The helmet brings out her eyes .

Junebug060609

britab said:

Snip

DD doesn't notice it and there are families dealing with real medical issues, so the helmet is not a big deal.

This.

I know I felt like MOTY when DSs pedi insisted on a referral to PT, but now I'm glad she was proactive. His referral at 4 months probably helped us avoid a helmet (he had mild plagio brought on by torticollis from womb position...and possibly this was the first manifestation of his global developmental delays).

When I went to drive him to his first appt I was a mess. Felt like such a failure. Until I approached the exit, then I stopped feeling sorry for myself and started thanking the stars above this wasn't life threatening. His PT place was right next to Rady Children's Hospital. The Ronald McDonald House was a giveaway that there were kids fighting battles a helluva lot worse than plagio. Heck, I saw kids in the waiting room far worse off than he was...even if I'd known of his ASD at that time.

Krisd6

I noticed our little one always held his head to one side at about 1-2 mo old. He was diagnosed with torticollis and did have a little flat spot on the back of his head. The pediatrician told us to watch it but I pushed for early therapy. We started physical therapy at 2-3 mo andwent every week until recently. PT was wonderful- his torticollis has resolved and the flat spot is so much better. We will not need a helmet. If you are concerned- push for it. It was covered by our insurance and our little guy is doing great!

ho11yday

@ZeroZeroOne‌ we went through CT and had a great experience. Our cost was $2500 but the insurance reimbursed us after the fact for a portion of it. The staff was very pleasant. They even steered us away from doing a second helmet when I felt there still was a bit of flatness left after he out grew his helmet. (No body notices it but me now, not even dh. I sometimes think it's my eyes playing tricks.)

gypsymystic

aimeefarrahfowler said:

My LO has a flat spot on the back of his head too. He barely spends any time on his back anymore, so I'm thinking that is just the way his head is shaped. The pedi was not concerned at all at his 6 month check up. I think when his hair thickens up a bit

I think what is more concerning is when baby's head is lopsided and has a flat spot on one side, rather than the back.

I'm hoping when his hair grows in and thickens up it will not be noticeable.

This. My DS2 has a flat spot on the upper part of his head, dead center. DS1 had this also, I was freaked... but then I realized I also have it so I think it is the shape of their heads.

sparklingdiamond

gypsymystic said:

aimeefarrahfowler said:

My LO has a flat spot on the back of his head too. He barely spends any time on his back anymore, so I'm thinking that is just the way his head is shaped. The pedi was not concerned at all at his 6 month check up. I think when his hair thickens up a bit

I think what is more concerning is when baby's head is lopsided and has a flat spot on one side, rather than the back.

I'm hoping when his hair grows in and thickens up it will not be noticeable.

This. My DS2 has a flat spot on the upper part of his head, dead center. DS1 had this also, I was freaked... but then I realized I also have it so I think it is the shape of their heads.

My DH and his other son have flatter heads, so I am thinking maybe Nolan is just taking after DH.

lexi.weinberg

My son had a mild case of torticullis which we had to see a second pediatrician to discover. A few easy PT sessions and some exercises at home and he's cured! We went the helmet route at 4 mo (close to 5) by the time he actually got it fitted and it's worked miracles!!! Beautiful results, painless, super quick when you catch it young. When all is said and done 10 weeks tops. I would highly recommend it to other parents. As it was explained to us it's not just cosmetic because ear, eye and jaw alignment can start become a problem with plagioceohaly (flattening of one side). Not to scare anyone of course!! I just thought a lot about this when trying to figure out what to do.

dp1320

lol @ "I'll have to google it" ... isn't that what she's getting paid for to know?