- Pregnancy
- Baby & Toddler
- Parents
- Getting Pregnant
- Baby Names
- Product Reviews
-
Registry
- Community
-
More
Want a personalized experience?
Download the free app
Preemies
My baby has tightened muscle tone
I don't want to drag this story out too long, but just to preface: B/G twins born at 31 weeks, stayed in NICU for 8 weeks, have been seen by a million specialist, no major complications. Now, while in the NICU a physical therapist noticed our little girl was a bit stiff and suggested some exercises to do to help stretch her out. To be really honest, once they came home, things got busy and hectic, and we were not the best at doing these exercises with her. Well today we went to visit a developmetal specialist and the NP noticed her tightness and once again discussed doing stretches with her. Trust me, this time we WILL do them! The one thing that concerned me is that she had to throw out the word Cerebral Palsy. She said that after 8-9 months adjusted age, she should be much more loosened up after doing stretches with her. If she wasn't improving she may have to go back to her Neurologist to have some more scans done. She said that this is probably just typical preemie tightness. Keep in mind, both babies and been evaluated by Easter Seals (EI), and have been seen by their pediatrician all the times necessary, both noticed her tightness, but never scared me by saying the words Cerebral Palsy. I want to say that this nurse practicioner was trying to use these terms to intimidate me and to feel powerful, we didn't start off on such great terms. Our appt. was for 1pm and the office staff didn't get back from lunch until 1:45pm, leaving me and the twins locked out of the office, and I said something about it bothering me!
Ok, I guess what I'm looking for here is someone that has had this "preemie stiffness" and that doing stretches and exercises helped out their situation. I'm so sorry to go on and on, I just thought we had conquered all of our preemie hurdles, and this dr. appt really really upset me. I need the wind put back in my sails!!
This discussion has been closed.
Re: My baby has tightened muscle tone
DD is 6mos adjusted and has finally worked thru a lot of her high muscle tone issues, BUT we've been seeing a PT for the last five months (2-3 times a month) to work on that. We spent the majority of her 16wk NICU stay in isolation where she was handled only when absolutely necessary so she was pretty stiff and was really favoring her right side.
Easier said than done, but try not to think too much about CP - focus on the recommended excercises and you'll probably see an improvement before you know it.
DD has a lot of tightness and we've been seeing a PT once a week since January (she was 4 months actual/ 2 months adjusted). She also has pretty severe torticollis.
She has been steadily getting more flexible as she gets older. I try to do the recommended excercises with her, but like you, things are hectic. I do make sure she has lots of play time and tummy time. As she has become more aware of her arms and legs, she has begun stretching them more. She still prefers to be in an extended position and does not usually draw her arms inward and her shoulders down unless she is very relaxed.
It was really in the last month that we've seen a difference (from 7-8 months old actual). DD's tightness seems to come back whenever she's growth spurting, which seems like it's every other week.
Good luck!
We went through something very similar with one of our 30 weeker twins. He was much smaller than his brother at birth, and still is. He was always much more stiff than his brother. MUCH more stiff.
Long story short, our pedi thought he had CP, we had a heck of a time getting a PT evaluation (because our state is having horrible budget issues), and we eventually ended up seeing a pediatric orthopedic surgeon because he had a strange limp that made us think he was having trouble moving his hips properly. The orthopedic surgeon did some stretches on or little guy and was able to rule out CP by feeling the way his muscles responded to the stretches.
It's been a long road, especially because we didn't have the help of a therapist that knew what they were doing, but our little guy is not nearly as stiff as he used to be. He runs, climbs, and (sorta) jumps now, and he's a normal, rough and tumble little boy now.
Good luck, and please let me know if you have any questions!
My LO's developmental doctor noticed a bit of stiffness as well. She called it dystonia of prematurity. We were asked to bicycle her legs after every diaper change and give her something that would allow her to work her legs (like a jenny jump or a walker).
The next visit, she noticed a marked improvement and said that there was no need to worry about lasting effects of the stiffness.
Hello,
I was wondering what stretches you did with your baby. My son was diagnosed with High Muscle Tone at 2 months old. He does not qualify for any services as he is meeting, and exceeding his milestones. He is 5 months old, and laughs, talks, rolls both ways, etc... I stretch him EVERYDAY but it does not seem to be helping. He can not go flat footed and that scared me to death. I am so scared he has CP. He lifts is legs to his belly, but he cant reach them near his mouth at all!!! Any help will be greatly appreciated!!