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Babies: 0 - 3 Months
jshf
member
RP: "Back to sleep" - Wry neck and Flat Head Syndrome
jshf
member
My son was diagnosed with torticollis or wry neck at his 4 mo appt. I had never heard of it before, but basically your neck muscles develop unevenly and your head is tilted to one side. It can lead to a lot of developmental problems but is usually treatable with PT. My pedi said that ever since the "back to sleep" campaign for SIDS, more kids have this problem. She also said they usually have flat head syndrome because kids tend to favor one side. Before when babies were put on their belly to sleep, parents were told to switch sides and the neck muscles were stretched out so there were fewer cases of torticollis as well as flat head syndrome.Fortunately my son does not have flat head syndrome and does not have to wear a helmet. A big reason is that I have worn him in a carrier since he was a newborn. I was struggling cause he likes to be worn for naps, but now that I know it has helped him, I don't mind wearing him. I just wanted to share my story so other moms can be aware of this problem. I wish that doctors would inform you of this possible consequence from back sleeping. Although it is usually congenital, but there are a lot of environmental things you can do to prevent it from getting worse and to fix it!
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Re: RP: "Back to sleep" - Wry neck and Flat Head Syndrome
my dd has toticollis and just went to pt on friday. no flat head yet, but this can all be treated
Well said! It is my professional opinion, as an early intervention physical therapist, that pediatricians need to be more proactive in identifying this. Typically, we (physical therapists) receive babies later (>6 months) after the pediatrician keeps saying that the baby will outgrow this. So kuddos to you for having such a great pediatrician!
Just so you know-- it is the best diagnosis to have in early intervention. It is easily treatable with parents who are willing to be diligent about the exercises. Good luck!
She says to continue back sleep but to try to keep his head straight when he is laying down, to do lots of tummy time and just to try get him to turn towards the weak side. I was just giving my opinion that wearing him in a carrier for naps probably prevented him from getting a flat head. My pedi said usually with torticollis, babies have flat head cause they favor turning to one side.
Of course it's better to deal with torticollis or flat head syndrome than risk SIDS, but I was just sharing my experience because I think parents should be aware of these other problems. I noticed DS tilting his head to the right since he was 8 weeks old but didn't think it was a problem. If I had been aware, then we could have started PT then.