Going against pediatricians recommendation

jnthurston · March 2010

My friend just had her sons 4 month appointment and suggested they go and see someone to get his flat head evaluated and they are not doing it because they think it will round out on its own...

Have any of you gone against your pedi's recommendation? I think I would take into consideration what I think is the best thing for my child but I would always take into consideration what the doctor thinks as well.

lspinman · March 2010

Yes I have but not for anything serious like that. We opted not to do antibiotics for an early ear infection and did warm compresses for a few days to see if it would clear up. Had it gotten worse we would have used the compresses.

Maybe your friend just needs a day or so to think about it. I can see how that can be a scary thing to think about.

sgrl · March 2010

I had friends who did the opposite regarding the flat spot issue - as in, they sought other opinions after the pedi said the child's head was fine - but I can't imagine just trusting that my kid's head would round out on its own if the doctor told me it was an issue!

I ignored the pedi when he said that he didn't like swaddling, and I ignored the nurse practitioner when she said we could start cereal at 3.5 months if we "felt like it" (no medical reason to do so - but I guess if we didn't feel like it, it wasn't really ignoring her advice!)

luckyangel · March 2010

Here is what I found out when we saw the cranial specialists. It rarely rounds out on its own unless you do repositioning and physical therapy exercizes to losen the neck muscles. Allowing it to stay out of whack can cause TMJ (lock jaw) later in life and also effect depth perseption if it is bad enough.

I wouldnt skip what the doc said. At least they should see the specialist and find out what they can do to help it round out. We saw the specialist at 2 months and have been doing repositioning and PT every day since, and we just found out last week that LO's head is almost perfectly shaped now and he will NOT need a doc band and should NOT have any issues as a result of the problem. So, my suggestion is they should see the specialist...its covered by most insurance co's if your doc refers you.

jnthurston · March 2010

I completley agree with you guys on this, if it is something serious you should follow doctors recommendations! I told them that they should see the specialist, I really hope they do!

Tonya_G · March 2010

It just depends. Non-medical stuff (sleep, starting solids, etc...) I happily ignore the pedi's advice if I've researched and have a reason to. But something medical like that, no, I wouldn't ignore it. Or, if I disagreed, I'd at least seek out a second opinion.

jessloveschase08 · March 2010

Just a few times for nothing serious... like putting cereal in his bottle. I don't and won't do that.

Mimi's mom · March 2010

We are waiting for my son's helmet to come in now. The Neurosurgeon that our ped recommended said that although it's not a life threatening condition, it should be treated when repositioning hasn't worked, so we went ahead with his recommendation. We would have felt terrible down the line if there was something we could have done and didn't.

jessloveschase08 · March 2010

luckyangel:

Here is what I found out when we saw the cranial specialists. It rarely rounds out on its own unless you do repositioning and physical therapy exercizes to losen the neck muscles. Allowing it to stay out of whack can cause TMJ (lock jaw) later in life and also effect depth perseption if it is bad enough.

I wouldnt skip what the doc said. At least they should see the specialist and find out what they can do to help it round out. We saw the specialist at 2 months and have been doing repositioning and PT every day since, and we just found out last week that LO's head is almost perfectly shaped now and he will NOT need a doc band and should NOT have any issues as a result of the problem. So, my suggestion is they should see the specialist...its covered by most insurance co's if your doc refers you.

When did TMJ become lockjaw? I have it and never had "lock jaw". Not being rude, just wondering. I've never heard it be considered that.

Lucky428 · March 2010

Tonya_G:
It just depends. Non-medical stuff (sleep, starting solids, etc...) I happily ignore the pedi's advice if I've researched and have a reason to. But something medical like that, no, I wouldn't ignore it. Or, if I disagreed, I'd at least seek out a second opinion.

Same.

My_Kid_is_RAD! · March 2010

thats too big of an issue for me to ignore...i go to the pedi for medical advice, not to ignore it! Hopefully, they will reconsider and take their LO.

leahraewku · March 2010

Tonya_G:
It just depends. Non-medical stuff (sleep, starting solids, etc...) I happily ignore the pedi's advice if I've researched and have a reason to. But something medical like that, no, I wouldn't ignore it. Or, if I disagreed, I'd at least seek out a second opinion.

Yep, this exactly.

jenny1980 · March 2010

Tonya_G:
It just depends. Non-medical stuff (sleep, starting solids, etc...) I happily ignore the pedi's advice if I've researched and have a reason to. But something medical like that, no, I wouldn't ignore it. Or, if I disagreed, I'd at least seek out a second opinion.

This.

jeeanfoxy · April 2010

i haven't gone against DD's pedi's orders.. well not yet. LOL

GingerCupcake · April 2010

Sometimes flattening of the head can be a sign of a serious medical condition. Not often it's rare, but happened to a friend of ours, their baby required the band to round it out and was also diagnosed with a syndrome of some sort (I can't remember what she said it was) as a result that will have to be monitored as she grows and develops. I really hope your friend takes her LO to the specialist.

Kcaracc · April 2010

oooh that sounds irresponsible to me! ive gone against my pedi's recommendation for little things, never anything involving their head or serious issues! theres no reason NOT to get it checked out.

amos07 · April 2010

We have gone against recommendations for things like solids and swaddling but nothing major. I would definitely talk to your friend and try to convince her to at least talk to the specialist.

firsttogo · April 2010

I think that you definitely should put some weight in what pedis say, but you are the mom. It is up to you to weigh all possibilities, and make an intelligent decision. She is not putting her child in danger. It is rare that plagiocephaly causes severe long-lasting problems, and mostly is a cosmetic issue (mainly for the parents) If she chooses not to get him evaluated that is her prerogative.

You have no idea really why she is not taking him for an eval. Sometimes insurance will not cover it. While money should not drive our medical decisions, the truth is, it does. For example, my DS1 had a seizure last fall. We took him to the ER, he had a CT scan, among other things. We followed up with a neurologist, and were ordered a test for him that would cost us over 1500 oop. The Neuro ordered the test to cover his butt, but told us that he felt the seizure was an isolated incident. We opted to not do the test. Had another seizure occured, or several more, we may have changed our minds.

We are not neglectful parents, we are smart parents. Paying for a possibly unnecessary test would have caused financial strain.

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