Re: Re: Star Band Just Put On

[Guest guest]

Tsmter2000,

Great advice from and Debbie- looks like an adjustment would do the

trick!! My son wore his DOC band from May through July here in

South Florida, so I know what your saying about heat. Honestly, I kept him

indoors as much as possible, for his comfort, and to create less problems

with irritation. He was only 5-8 months at the time, so I'm not sure how old

your youngster is and if it would be as easy as keeping a young child indoors

as it would for an older, more mobile child. I would try to find activities

indoors as much as possible- a stroll through the mall, indoor play gyms,

etc. I personally left the band off for an hour or so if it was extremely

hot and we had no choice but to be outside- but this was rare and I never let

him go a day without any less than 21 hours in the band (and when I did this,

I tried to keep pressure off the back of his head by holding him as much as

possible). Sometimes you'll have to make those judgement calls depending on

the situation. Good luck- I hope the ortho fixed up those problems- keep us

posted!

' Mom

[Guest guest]

If your son is getting red marks that do not fade within an hour then the

band needs an adjustment. If you have any doubts whatsoever that the band is

not fitting properly then a visit to the ortho is warranted. Use your

instinct - if it doesn't seem right then it probably isn't.

Marci (Mom to )

Oklahoma

[Guest guest]

Hi EIR722,

Welcome to the group!!! My son was also dx with torticollis- at 2 months- and also developed plagio inutero which only worsened with the tort. Have you already started on pt for the torticollis for your son? It's important that the tort get worked out because in many tort cases, this is the cause of the plagio in the first place- by being unable to turn one way and constantly favoring one side or "rubbing" it away! My son had left tort, which for him meant that his head tilted towards the left, and he was unable to rotate his head to look left- so he looked to his right for everything and created a flat spot on the back right. It took approximately 8-9 months of aggressive therapy to get to the point that we are considered tort resolved. It takes more or less time to resolve, depending on the severity of the tight neck muscle (there are other causes of tort). Has your son had an MRI done or CAT scan? Has it been determined that he has CMT (Congenital Muscular Tort)? Chances are this is a muscular tightness problem and can be treated with lots of stretches and massage. Check into the support group www.torticolliskids , for great tips and advice on how to treat tort. I will attach a few links for you as well, but its important that you seek out professional pt- someone that is VERY experienced with tort, so that they can guide you and help with those stretches (this gives you a break too!)- you can call local hospitals and ask if they have a pediatric pt knowledgeable on tort. We tried repositioning but failed miserably due to daycare issues and just because he was unable to turn his head to the left at all. We opted for the DOC band at 5 months and it helped greatly with his facial and ear asymmetry and are so pleased with his results. The stretching will also help with the facial asymmetry, as the muscle is so tight its pulling everything to meet it. Please email me if I can help you in anyway. This can be very overwhelming at first, hang in there- with hard work and determination your son will do just fine. There is a light at the end of the tunnel, but I won't kid you, its a long tunnel and its a lot of work getting there (depending upon the severity of the tort). Good luck and please keep us posted!

Torticollis Info

Stretches/ Holds

' Mom