Plagiocephaly/ Doc band helmets, anyone???

kmb585 · December 2011

It is looking like one of my little guys is going to need one of these due to his misshapen head, which was likely due to his brother's head pushing against it inutero. The pedi said she would refer us after his 4 mos checkup, which is next week. I already know that our insurance won't cover it, so thankfully both little guys won't need it but just was curious on what we can expect?!?! Thanks!

tootlebug · December 2011

we were referred by one of the "bad" pedis in the office we were going to at the time. we were in there for something else and didnt get our preferred doctor...later on i found this one pedi had a really bad reputation.

anyways, we went to the doc band place and they took a bunch of pictures of his head. she also did some measurements and stuff. at the end, they recommended it. i wasnt sold. i went back to the pedi i liked and she said definitely not - his head was mishapened bc he had slept through the night at 6-7 weeks, always on his back. so he had a flat spot in the back of his head. my pedi said his head was fine and that it would eventually even out....and it did. good luck.

Mrs. Alice · December 2011

We are going next week for our evaluation... The consultation is free, so if it is recommended and covered then I guess we will forward with it. The place we are going to has a $3800 flat rate cost. I'm dreading the 4 hour round trip drive, but I'd rather do it sooner than later.

SLPMel · December 2011

We went to see a pediatric orthopedist because DS has torticollis, which was impacting the flat spot on his head. While we were there, I asked about the helmet (because my neice had it) and the Ped Orthopedist said that he didn't think anybody needs one.

We started using the Noggin Nest and working on his torticollis exercises and we have seen a HUGE difference in the flat spot on his head.

I would thing about seeing a Pediatric Orthopedist for a medical opinion-especially when it is THAT expensive, and the companies are there to make money.

kmb585 · December 2011

Thanks for the responses

We have the noggin nest and try tummy time, lying on his side, etc but it is not so much that he has a flat spot on the back of his head but his head is oblong b/c he was smooshed in my pelvis and his brothers head was right against his when I was pregnant. So I am kinda thinking we will have to go the helmet route, guess we will find out for sure in a couple of weeks

Jen0204 · December 2011

My nephew just got one a couple of weeks ago. At the place my sister took him to they do one helmet for 4-6 weeks and then re-evaluate and if he needs it again there's a second charge and a second helmet. She's already decided that he won't be doing the second helmet, whether they recommend it or not. She said that the helmet is making a big difference and that when he went for his second follow up this week there was a significant change in his measurements, so she's happy.

The only thing she doesn't like is that since he got the helmet he hasn't been STTN as well. He was doing 7-8 hours a night, and now he's back down to 3. his pediatrician said it could be because of the helmet, or because of a growth spurt or teething, there's really no way to know. She's also had a couple of rude people stop her when they're out and ask what's wrong with him. I told her she should answer "nothing, but apparently there's a lot wrong with you"!

My nephew seems to have no issues with it at all and doesn't pull at it and isn't any fussier. He's 18 weeks old and got it two weeks ago.

jennyfur211 · December 2011

My DS has a helmet b/c since he was a baby he always slept on his back with his eyes looking at the ceiling; he never turned his head while sleeping, refused to sleep on his side or his stomach, therefore, the back of his head never had the chance to round out, it was flat as a pancake. My pedi continuously tried to tell me it would round out by itself but my gut told me to look into the helmet, lo and behold at his 9 month appt. she referred us to the someone for a helmet. He has been wearing the helmet since he was 11 months old, he is 17 months old now, and will wear it until he turns 18 months and then we are done with it. Up until a month or so ago he wore the helmet 23 out of 24 hours a day but now he only has to wear it at nap & bed because he's walking and not laying around all day. We have seen significant improvement in his head, but since we started so late the improvement won't be 100%. I'm ok with that b/c it already looks sooooo much better!

I will say that I was hesitant about putting the helmet on him b/c I wasn't sure how he was going to react to it but he has had no problems with it, he continued to sleep through the night and never fussed over it unless it was really hot out & he was sweaty then we just took it off and didn't follow the 23 out of 24 guideline that day.

Also, are you sure that your insurance won't cover it? only asking b/c I didn't think mine would cover it but they did b/c his head was really bad.

Best of luck!! If you have any questions feel free to PM me

Melin086 · December 2011

One of my boys had a helmet for the exact same reason. We noticed it pretty much right away with him so it wasn't due to him sleeping on his back. He was about 7-8 months old when he got it, I can't remember for sure without looking it up. We never had any issues with him wearing it and it helped the shape of his head tremendously. He wore it about 7 weeks and the person working with us was amazed at how quickly it shaped his head. I'm really glad that we went ahead with the helmet. Our insurance did pay part of it...they denied it at first, but the place we went submitted it again and got it approved.

flutepharm87 · December 2011

In our area, Ian's helmet cost a little over $2,500 without insurance (luckily insurance covered ours as we only paid $256). Honestly, the results have been astounding enough that if you can afford it, I would go for it. Basically, we tried PT and keeping him off of his head for 6 weeks first and when his head didn't improve, we went to the brace shop to get his fitted. They used a machine to map out the exact shape of his head (I've heard that some offices still make a cast of the baby's head) and created the helmet based on his exact measurements. It's foam on the inside and hard on the outside.

At first, we weaned him into it (a few hours on, an hour off). Took about a week, but now he wears the helmet 23 hours a day. He gets an hour off to clean the helmet and get a bath every day. Every 3 weeks we get the helmet checked. They measure his head to notate any changes that have occurred and shave foam off the inside so it continues to help his growth. He got his helmet on 10/28 and when we checked his helmet on 11/22, he'd gone from a 13mm difference to a 7mm difference! Once we hit 3mm, we'll start weaning him off (he's currently at 5mm). They're talking about being done around the end of January (possibly).

It's really not that bad. Ian doesn't really care that it's on. He actually kind of likes it, he uses it like a crash helmet, lol!

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Plagiocephaly/ Doc band helmets, anyone???

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