Torticollis and Plagiocephaly
By Dara_momto4
@Dara_momto4 (842)
United States
November 1, 2006 11:32pm CST
Are there any other parents who've dealt with either of these? My 4 year old son had both.
3 responses
@megs85 (3142)
• Australia
11 Feb 07
I havent personally had to deal with either of these problems with my own son, but we have had troubles of our own to deal with- he has a cows milk and soys milk protein allergy, which can be tough, and was in special care when he was first born due to the fact of sittin gin my broken waters for so long.
My sister in laws first child had a rather flat head due to the fact he got stuck in the birth canal and was eventually delivered via emergency caeserean.
My sons head was slightly elongated for the first few days, due to the fact he turned as he was coming out. I didnt even notice it at all at the time, but when I look back on photos now, I can pick it out.
My son also had a very strong neck, so again I cant relate to what you went through with your child, but I am always interested in hearing about the experiences of other parents. What did they suggest for his torticollis? Just lots of time in the prone (stomach) position, or did you have to do exercises specifically targeting the problem?
@Dara_momto4 (842)
• United States
11 Feb 07
For the tort we did lots of tummy time. He hated it, but we tried to make it fun for him. He also had a physical therapist come to our home twice a week to do stretching exercises. We also had him checked by a specialist to track his progress. He improved quickly and near the end we had his eyesight checked to make sure his last little bit of tilt wasn't sight related. He did end up with no tilt! The tough part for us wasn't the tort, but the plagiocephaly. When he wore his helmet (23hrs a day) so many adults would stare. Kids would be curious and ask about it but the adults would just gawk at him. Looking at him now, noone would know he had these problems.
@rndistgg (109)
• United States
7 Mar 07
That's the part I'm worried about. People being judgemental and so many people are against the baby helmets thinking it's hurting them or it's torture or that we only care about how they look, etc. I wouldnt think they would, but some people don't know when not to shut up and make rude comments and I'm not ready for that but we'll see how it goes.
@Dara_momto4 (842)
• United States
5 Nov 06
Torticollis is also known as Wry Neck. It's a tightened neck muscle that prevents the neck and head from having full range of motion. It can be present at birth or happen to children & adults after a neck injury. Plagiocephaly is basically a flat head. It's were the skull is flat in certain areas and protruding in others. Both of these range in severity from mild to severe. My sons cases were moderate. He needed physical therapy for the torticollis and a cranial orthosis (molded helmet) to fix the plagiocephaly.
Thanks for asking. :)
@rndistgg (109)
• United States
7 Mar 07
I just got back from a doctor today for my daughter and next week we're going to go to a different specialist for information on the DOC band treatment so basically we're going to talk about getting her into one of those baby helmets. One side of her head is flat because she only sleeps on one side of her head and I tried everything and she refused to switch sleeping positions so now we have to get a helmet. Who knows how much this is going to cost me. It'll be worth it in the end though.
