Helmet!

Oohgurl · September 2013

Well LO had a flat spot at his 4 month appt and she referred him to a physical therapist for neck stretches. 3 minutes after I got there they said he needed a helmet and would have to wear it until he is a year old. She did say that he did not have torticollis and did not need neck stretches.

I asked if sitting up or more tummy time would help and she said they find that makes little difference once the flat spot forms.

I want to get a second opinion. Anyone have experience with this?

ecgal87 · September 2013

My son has a flat spot and his pedi doesn't seem overly concerned. He told us to put a crib soother toy on the outside of his crib to lure him to face the other way & that it would even out some. He said it's common for babies to develop one on the side my son's is on because they like to sleep turned to the right.
My niece had a pretty noticeable flat spot as a baby. I can't tell she has one by looking at her now at 8 years old, even though I can feel it. I have read a few articles about them because I overly worry about everything, and I was under the impression that helmets are only required for very severe flat spots. Of course, take that with a grain of salt because I have no medical degree. I'd probably seek out a second opinion just in case, but I wouldn't be opposed to the helmet if it was ultimately determined to be beneficial. Just my thoughts.

lpowell333 · September 2013

I was looking for a post like this. We just had W's 4 month appt. yesterday and they are sending us to a specialist Wednesday to have an ultrasound done of her skull. She has a flat spot on the back right side of her head. It has me worried that something major could be wrong. Did they give any details of why the helmet, is it just to reshape it? Of course I was on the internet all last evening and was reading the worst case senarios

Oohgurl · September 2013

Just to reshape. She said that nothing medically would happen if we didnt do it just a flat head. She said most people chose the helmet.

ecgal87 · September 2013

Here's an article about helmets. The little girl's spot was affecting her facial features.
https://www.nbcnews.com/health/nearly-half-babies-have-flat-spots-study-finds-6C10551689

smg2302 · September 2013

I just had my daughter's four month yesterday. My daughter has a slight flat spot as well. His (the pediatrician) response was that the only time he would recommend the helmet is if the back of the head was a flat as a table, that once the babies start sitting, walking, etc. it would go back to the round shape, and by the time they are 2 years old, no one would ever know their heads were flat. I live in Tampa, Florida, and he said in our area there is only one pediatrician who even recommends the helmets, that many times the placiocephaly gets sensationalized. His thought process was that most insurances will not cover the helmet, which can cost upwards of $4k. The helmet is used for slight cranial pressure over time to reshape it faster. If the bones are still soft and will reshape anyway, as long as there is no torticollis, he recommends do nothing. If there is torticollis to do PT. Otherwise, its just aesthetic and not to worry.

Edit: clarification.

lpowell333 · September 2013

whoa that's alot of money

Oohgurl · September 2013

I asked that. She said most babies develop flat spots now from sleeping on back. I said how come every baby doesnt have a helmet i see? She said some are more severe than others.

She did say the wait and see idea is not good because I would be wasting time and she said there is little evidence his head would reshape on its own.

ecgal87 · September 2013

I'm willing to bet if it's not really severe that it would reshape at least somewhat once he becomes more mobile. Although I can still feel my niece's, I can still tell it is not nearly as flat as it was when she was a baby. Hers was almost completely flat on the back, only slightly better than the pictures Google will show you when you search "plagiocephaly."

jedimindtrick · September 2013

Our PT (have been going since 2 mo for torticollis) said that if its mild you don't usually need a helmet but if its moderate to severe it depends on age. She said if they're young enough you can help it by repositioning. But if they're 6 mo or older theyre sitting too much and you can't really put pressure on the other side without the helmet.

TrulyBlessed22 · September 2013

Like many of the PP's I would suggest you get a second opinion. I actually was concerned about my DD's flat spot and slight bump on the right as she favors her right side when sleeping so I went ahead and made an appointment to have it checked out as I wasn't comfortable waiting 2 more weeks for her 4 month check-up to get it looked at.

Anyway, we went yesterday and our Ped wasn't overly concerned about it (and trust me it's noticable). He did a serious of neck stretches to test her mobility and was happy with that - no strain on her part. He then sat her up and made sure her facial features were straight and thankfully they were. Finally he felt all around her head a few times to see exactly where the flat spots/bumps were. He then explained that most babies end up gettign a rounder head around 6 months or so as that is when they are sitting up more etc. I asked abuot the helmet and he said she is no where near needing one nor would he recommend I see a specialist; however, they will continue to monitor it at each appt to insure that it is, in fact, getting better.

Here is the "prescription" we were given for our DD:

Next stretches twice a day (morning and night), that is to help prevent her from getting a tight neck as that limits their mobility.
He cleared us to start using her Bumbo and Exersaucer as he was very happy with her neck/head strength and how well she holds up her head.
Rotate which side of the crib I put her in nightly and if possible, buy a crib soothign machine (aquarium etc) to get her to look in the opposite direction of that which she favors. She favors her right so we have to get her to look left.
Similiar to the above, do the same with her diaper changes...switch the direction she faces so she's forced to turn her head the other way.

Hope this helps!

ETA - Obviously, I'm not a Doctor, nor do I play one on TV lol - I just wanted to share what we were told about our DD's flat spot. Gettign a second opinion is never a bad idea when such things are involved.

Oohgurl · September 2013

Thanks all! After I freaked out, my husband made an appointment with a Cranial Facial Specialist for next Thursday. I will keep you updated!

ecgal87 · September 2013

I bought the Fisher Price Rainforest Waterfall soother today after seeing it had over 300 good reviews on Target's site. DS has been in a trance with it this evening. I think it will make a real difference keeping his head turned to the left.

A little PSA: Target has them for $42 and currently has a Cartwheel coupon for 10% on Fisher Price toys, and you can combine that with 5% off with your Red Card. I planned on doing that today but stopped by Walmart first, where I got the last one on clearance for $32.

Oohgurl · September 2013

gmorel said:

Like many of the PP's I would suggest you get a second opinion. I actually was concerned about my DD's flat spot and slight bump on the right as she favors her right side when sleeping so I went ahead and made an appointment to have it checked out as I wasn't comfortable waiting 2 more weeks for her 4 month check-up to get it looked at.

Anyway, we went yesterday and our Ped wasn't overly concerned about it (and trust me it's noticable). He did a serious of neck stretches to test her mobility and was happy with that - no strain on her part. He then sat her up and made sure her facial features were straight and thankfully they were. Finally he felt all around her head a few times to see exactly where the flat spots/bumps were. He then explained that most babies end up gettign a rounder head around 6 months or so as that is when they are sitting up more etc. I asked abuot the helmet and he said she is no where near needing one nor would he recommend I see a specialist; however, they will continue to monitor it at each appt to insure that it is, in fact, getting better.

Here is the "prescription" we were given for our DD:

Next stretches twice a day (morning and night), that is to help prevent her from getting a tight neck as that limits their mobility.

He cleared us to start using her Bumbo and Exersaucer as he was very happy with her neck/head strength and how well she holds up her head.

Rotate which side of the crib I put her in nightly and if possible, buy a crib soothign machine (aquarium etc) to get her to look in the opposite direction of that which she favors. She favors her right so we have to get her to look left.

Similiar to the above, do the same with her diaper changes...switch the direction she faces so she's forced to turn her head the other way.
Hope this helps!

ETA - Obviously, I'm not a Doctor, nor do I play one on TV lol - I just wanted to share what we were told about our DD's flat spot. Gettign a second opinion is never a bad idea when such things are involved.

How do you know which side she favors? Is it obvious? She did some stuff where he would follow with his eyes but he didnt seem to have trouble with either side. He flat spot is smack dab in the middle of the back of his head. I am going to get a soother, for sure! And thanks for taking time to write all that out. It is very helpful!

TrulyBlessed22 · September 2013

@ohgrl95 No problem, I'm happy to help. For her it is obvious as the middle of her head (above the neck is flat) and then she has a slight bump on the right. Once I noticed that I took note to how she sleeps and noticed she favors her right when sleeping.

flyliceandcoffee · September 2013

I've asked our pedi about the flat spot S has and so far he's not concerned at all. He said their head tends to round out when they start sitting up more so until she can sit up on her own she's most likely gonna have a flat spot on her head.

I think helmets are overrated. I've got a pretty prominent flat spot on the back of my head and I like to think I turned out just fine and don't look too weird

kmcd23 · September 2013

crazycoffeegirl said:

I've asked our pedi about the flat spot S has and so far he's not concerned at all. He said their head tends to round out when they start sitting up more so until she can sit up on her own she's most likely gonna have a flat spot on her head.

I think helmets are overrated. I've got a pretty prominent flat spot on the back of my head and I like to think I turned out just fine and don't look too weird

Me too! In the exact same spot where LO's flat spot is, mine is flat too. I wonder how much of it is genetic. I was concerned because his right ear sticks out a little more than the left, and maybe the flat spot was pushing it forward. Then I remembered my right ear sticks out more than my left too. At our last appt, our pedi wasn't too concerned. She'll check it again at our 4 month appt. in a couple of weeks. I think I read that 60% of babies develop a flat spot to some degree... I definitely don't see 60% of babies wearing helmets, so that's a relief!

Oohgurl · September 2013

crazycoffeegirl said:

I've asked our pedi about the flat spot S has and so far he's not concerned at all. He said their head tends to round out when they start sitting up more so until she can sit up on her own she's most likely gonna have a flat spot on her head.

I think helmets are overrated. I've got a pretty prominent flat spot on the back of my head and I like to think I turned out just fine and don't look too weird

Part of me wants my baby to be more perfect than he already is. Part of me thinks, people have been around for thousands of years with flat heads and noone has noticed.

Helmet!

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