Re:Jen&Luli. - regarding the helmet, please help!

[Guest guest]

Hi, thank you so much for the information. I'm so desperate for more

knowledge on this - I've been struggling for the past months trying to

get the the right treatment for my son. However, I have to use hanger

because the insurance and timing issue...

Could you explain to me what is the " holding points " in the bands? I

believe my son is getting a " Passive " band as the orthortist exactly

told us that " this band does not need adjustment and rounding will be

achieved by the round shape for the skull to grow in to " ! Will a

passive band ever work?

My son's helmet seems to be a little bit loose, especially the flat

side - he doesn't seem to care at all and has been happily wearing 23

hours since day 1! Is this normal?

Also, regarding the measurement, the orthortist did the scan, but we

were never told the results, but only a rough number that he got by

measuring my son's head with an old wooden ruler! What numbers I

should get in order to compare results in the future?

Is " shave the inside foam " every 2 weeks a MUST or just something "

nice to have " ?

I really appreciate your advise and it's important to me...

Anyone else who can help on these questions, please share your experience.

Thank you!

>

> HI! I am also in CA and we also used Hanger. I am a bit

surprised that they said no adjustments would be needed. We went in

every 2 weeks and almost every time they shaved a bit off of the

inside foam - wherever there was wear. Hangers are considered " active "

bands, meaning they have holding points and they actively direct the

growth of the skull. Versus a " passive " band which does not need

adjustment and rounding is achieved by the band providing a round

shape for the skull to grow in to.

> I wonder how much education on banding this ortho has - do you know?

> If a poor scan in 1st taken then yes, a poor band will be made. And

no good growth will come from a poor band. How is the band fitting

now? I know for us it took a few trips to the ortho to get a right

fit. Is it excessivley loose? Are there any holding points or does

it shift all over?

>

>

> Jen and Luli - 24 months

> Left tort - Right Plagio - Hanger Band Grad - CA

> http://www.babiesonline.com/babies/j/jens5th/

>

>

> Questions regarding using Hanger Helmet...

>

>

>

>

>

>

> Hi, I'm in California. My son is 6.5 months and he just had his helmet

> on last Friday.

>

> It seems that a lot of people recommend STARband from Orthomerica in

> my area. However, we had to go with Hanger as the Orthotist the doctor

> referred within our insurance group works with Hanger and their scan

> software is not compatible with that in Orthomerica so he can not

> order starband for us.

>

> After reading the comments here and conducting some online research,

> I'm a little bit worried.

>

> Our orthotist is friendly, but he told me that he foresees no need to

> make any significant adjustment to the helmet during the whole

> treatment, but that the key to ensure effectiveness is to Keep wearing

> the helmet in the correct way 23 hours a day. I read a parent say " It

> all depends on your orthotist and his or her experience with banding

> babies. " Does this mean that our orthotist isn't good as he obviously

> doesn't plan to do anything unless there's scratch or irritations on

> the baby's head due to wearing the helmet.

>

> Here's my question:

>

> What is the key factor that will affect the effectiveness of the

> helmet treatment? Is it the technology the firm uses to cast/scan to

> capture the head data accurately or the construction of the helmet

> itself or the experience of the orthotist? What kind of adjustment

> usually a good orthotist will need to do during the treatment?

>

> How likely the chances are that the hemlet is constructed in the wrong

> way at the beginning due to the wrong data or technology so that no

> matter how hard we try later, no desired results will be achieved?

>

> I know I have a lot of questions on this, but please share your

> experience or comments on any question that you think can help... I'm

> willing to switch my insurance in order to get my son the effective

> treatment. Thanks for your help!!

>

> Good luck to all...

>

>

>

>

>

> ________________________________________________________________________

> More new features than ever. Check out the new AOL Mail ! -

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>

[Guest guest]

We had a DOC band but I think Hanger bands work on the same

principles as the DOC band so I'll try to answer a few of your

questions. The band works to hold the prominent areas from

continuiing to grow outwards while allowing new growth to go the

flattened regions. I'm not exactly sure where the holding points

are. I didn't think a Hanger band was passive??? A passive band

can work especially if a child is younger but if they are older then

it will definitely take a lot longer to get the results you are

looking for. The band should definitely be loose on the flat side

(while getting tighter as the head grows). However, the band

shouldn't be so loose that it is shifting all over the place (just a

little looseness). Interesting with how Hanger did

measurements...our ortho/clinician uses these calliper things and

measured my son's head every so often. I think " looks " is more

important to go with anyways; however, measurements are nice to have

too. The " shave of the inside foam " is not a MUST unless you have

an active band and your child is hitting growth spurts during the

process. My son grew quickly during the time banded that he needed

the adjustments every 2 weeks (and occasionally sooner). It truly

depends on your child's growth patterns/spurts while in the band.

Good luck...maybe you can post the Hanger you go to and get feedback

on the ortho you see.

[Guest guest]

We also used hanger because of our insurance. :-) Also, if you want to post who you are seeing - there may be moms here who can help you if they have been to that office.

Holding points are places on the band that hold in the promenant areas of the skull - like a bossing forehead or more round back part of the head. There will be more room where the flat areas are. Then those points will become worn on the inside of the band as the skull grows making a need for shaving off the inside to provide for the growth. IF the band is passive then the shape is the shape and the skull is supposed to just grow into that shape. Hanger, by it's own definition, is "active" - unless your ortho gave you a different band. I know sometimes hangers do starbands (also active) but maybe you were given a danmar (passive).

Call your ortho and discuss this all with him. Make sure you know EVERYTHING about your band. Ask the ortho how long he has been treating plagio, how many babies he sees in a month, a year. Let himj know that you have been doing research about the bands and have read about the industry standards for an active band and are concerned about your child band. Be honest with them. I had to really vocalize that I was informed - I asked ALOT of questions - i wasn't too concerned about stepping on toes. This is your babies head - not thier ego we are protecting. Hope this doesn;t come across to harsh. I just want you yo know what I did - and hopefully it will help you. If you want to read more about the Hanger bands go here:

http://www.nicband.com/

Look under FAQ - they have a part that talks about adjustments.

HTH!

Jen and Luli - 24 months

Left tort - Right Plagio - Hanger Band Grad - CA

http://www.babiesonline.com/babies/j/jens5th/

Questions regarding using Hanger Helmet...

>

>

>

>

>

>

> Hi, I'm in California. My son is 6.5 months and he just had his helmet

> on last Friday.

>

> It seems that a lot of people recommend STARband from Orthomerica in

> my area. However, we had to go with Hanger as the Orthotist the doctor

> referred within our insurance group works with Hanger and their scan

> software is not compatible with that in Orthomerica so he can not

> order starband for us.

>

> After reading the comments here and conducting some online research,

> I'm a little bit worried.

>

> Our orthotist is friendly, but he told me that he foresees no need to

> make any significant adjustment to the helmet during the whole

> treatment, but that the key to ensure effectiveness is to Keep wearing

> the helmet in the correct way 23 hours a day. I read a parent say "It

> all depends on your orthotist and his or her experience with banding

> babies." Does this mean that our orthotist isn't good as he obviously

> doesn't plan to do anything unless there's scratch or irritations on

> the baby's head due to wearing the helmet.

>

> Here's my question:

>

> What is the key factor that will affect the effectiveness of the

> helmet treatment? Is it the technology the firm uses to cast/scan to

> capture the head data accurately or the construction of the helmet

> itself or the experience of the orthotist? What kind of adjustment

> usually a good orthotist will need to do during the treatment?

>

> How likely the chances are that the hemlet is constructed in the wrong

> way at the beginning due to the wrong data or technology so that no

> matter how hard we try later, no desired results will be achieved?

>

> I know I have a lot of questions on this, but please share your

> experience or comments on any question that you think can help... I'm

> willing to switch my insurance in order to get my son the effective

> treatment. Thanks for your help!!

>

> Good luck to all...

>

>

>

>

>

> __________________________________________________________

> More new features than ever. Check out the new AOL Mail ! -

http://webmail.aol.com

>

More new features than ever. Check out the new AOL Mail!