My LO has always preferred to turn his head to the left when sleeping, as a newborn i never thought anything of it and did not want to wake him to re position him. My LO is now 4 months and i noticed that he has a flat spot on the left side. I have been re-positioning his head as much as i can, but he is constantly moving in his sleep. I mentioned it to his ped and she said that they no longer recommend helmets and to spend more time on his tummy. He hardly naps during the day so he is not laying down on his head and i try and have him on his tummy as much as possible. Has anyone had these flats spots improve without a helmet? I'm considering going to see a specialist. Although his spot is not extremely flat, it bothers me and i want to make sure that I do whatever is necessary. He has no problem moving his head and does sleep on both sides.
Re: will flat spot on head improve?
Also, if you have any particular questions and want to share photos to get other's advice, there is aan amazing FB group called: "Plagiocephaly-Support/Information/Advice". They've been sooo helpful to me.
Um, since when are helmets not recommended anymore?! That is insane to me. My first child had a flat spot that corrected itself, but my second child needed a helmet. Both of my kids have enormous heads and both had torticollis because they were big babies and crammed inside of me.
My daughter wore a helmet for 2 months. She did exactly what you are describing and it wasn't just that she preferred sleeping on one side, come to find out she had torticollis just like my son did. Her neck muscle was so tight that she COULDN'T turn her neck the other way so she developed a pretty bad flat spot. She was in physical therapy to stretch out her neck and the specialist left the helmet decision up to us but I wasn't willing to take any chances with my kid's head. I would hate myself if it didn't correct itself over time and it was misshapen because I decided to skip the helmet.
Go see a specialist. I'm serious. It's the easiest fix in the world if your LO needed a helmet. Might as well have someone else give you an opinion right? And besides, most kids don't even realize the helmet is on. It's easy.
good luck!
An orthotist or plastic surgery specialist. Most children's hospitals have them, if that helps.
We started with physical therapy for the torticollis (tight neck) and she was the one to further evaluate my daughter then refer to Children's Hospital. They have cranial specialists.
Like PP said, it's NEVER too early to intervene, it can only be too late.
My DD started PT for torticollis (tight neck) when she was 4 weeks old because I spoke up about something I had noticed that seemed "off" about her. She ended up needing a helmet from 7 months old to 9 months old. Your LO might not even need that but ask your Pedi about a second opinion.
Don't even stress the helmet if it comes to that. It was so much easier than I thought it would be and babies look so cute in them. It sounds daunting now but it will be a piece of cake. I'm glad you went and saw someone. Good for you momma.
Yikes. Not true unfortunately. I work in healthcare AND have seen multiple cranial specialists at Children's Hospital when my daughter had plagiocephaly. PT is definitely GREAT and I totally recommend it but unfortunately for some babies it cannot do anything for a seriously misshapen head. That requires a bit more intervention.
And FWIW, I would sell my home or anything I own to pay for the helmet if I had to. Insurance only covered part of my daughter's helmet but I would have done anything to help fix her head so she didn't have issues later in life. It's just too important IMO.
That URL links to an article from the American Academy of Pediatrics that backs up what the PT said. Studies have shown helmets to be helpful only in very extreme circumstances of plagiocephaly, not in average cases.
And I don't appreciate the insinuation that my choice to have my child go through PT rather than immediately paying for a helmet makes me a bad person. Good for you that you would immediately sell your home for a medical device that has been shown to have little effect on an average case. Fortunately that is your right. But don't ever make it sound like I wouldn't move Heaven and Earth for my child simply because I take my time, do my research and make the decision right for my family. Dont ever insinuate that about another mother. Ever.
to date research and advice over an article from 5 years ago. I really hope your PT is right and I was never criticizing you.
And depending on the extent of the flat spot, it could cause facial features to be a little off.
our pt said a new study has come out that babies need 1 hour tummy time (in increments) per day to combat the sleep on back. But it's just got to be done.
Our 1st had a helmet. Didn't correct much-put on too late.
Youngest-no mention of helmet. We have baby in pt. we knew of the torticollis from day 4 (hospital missed it). So we worked on positioning. This baby has less physical development problems & is already rolling over so pt said head shape is improving from this.