going to see doc what questions should I ask/ tests to expect??

[Guest guest]

I am going on wednesday to take my son to the specialist to get his

positional plagio looked at for the first time. My husband is unable

to go with me so I dont know what kind of questions I should be

asking. I dont know if he will need a helmet or whatever cause the

last specialist when I asked him how bad it was he said it would

probably be a 4 on a scale from one to 10 so he referred me to this

doc. His ears are off set and on the top of his forehead there is a

hump and its not as bad now in the back. What should I expect at this

appt as far as tests and all that and like I said before what should I

ask?

[Guest guest]

I

would say that it depends upon the type of specialist. In our case, we first

saw a medical doctor and then were referred to the orthotist to assess if a

band would be beneficial.

The medical doctor was at Kennedy

Krieger Institute Cranial Cervical Clinic. There, she took a history and

examined her head. She also looked for asymmetry and watched some of ’s

movements to see if she saw any problems. We were also supposed to meet with

the PT for an exam, but our insurance wouldn’t cover it and it would have

been about 600 dollars, so we declined this portion. I was told that the PT

normally does measurements to judge the severity. This doctor confirmed the

diagnosis, provided us information about brachycephaly and explained our

options. She wrote prescriptions for both physical therapy (for cranial sacral

therapy) and for the helmet. She gave us referrals on where to go. I understand

that pediatricians can also write these prescriptions, but ours sent us to the

specialist. My questions here were about the long term effects of not

correcting the head shape, chances for improvement, what banding typically

involved.

Then, we went to Star Cranial, which is

where she got her band. They took another history, reviewed the information

they received from the doctor and then scanned her head. We were told she was

at 95 percent, which is moderate. We were given the option to band her, but

cautioned against hoping for too much because she was already 14 months old. We

asked questions about cost, usual insurance coverage, procedures for monitoring

the band, etc.

If I were to do it again, I would have

called my insurance company directly to ask questions and speed up the process.

We found out late in the process, that a Hanger band would have been covered. By

the time we found this out, she was already 14.5 months old and to wait longer

for the process with Hanger would have hindered our chances for progress, so we

paid out of pocket for the STARband since we could get her banded faster this

way. She was one week away from 15 months at her fitting.

Hope this helps.

, mom to , 17 months 1

week

11 weeks in STARband plus CST

going to see doc

what questions should I ask/ tests to expect??

I am going on wednesday to take my son to the

specialist to get his

positional plagio looked at for the first time. My husband is unable

to go with me so I dont know what kind of questions I should be

asking. I dont know if he will need a helmet or whatever cause the

last specialist when I asked him how bad it was he said it would

probably be a 4 on a scale from one to 10 so he referred me to this

doc. His ears are off set and on the top of his forehead there is a

hump and its not as bad now in the back. What should I expect at this

appt as far as tests and all that and like I said before what should I

ask?

[Guest guest]

http://www.cappskids.org/QuestionsForTheDoctorAndOrthotist.htm

This link takes you to a list of questions to ask to various dr's and

specialists. Check it out. If you think it will help, you can print

it out and then add your own quetions to it. I know that I find it

is easier to remember what I want to ask the dr if I write it down.

So maybe having the list with you will help. it might also show the

dr that you have done your research as well.

HTH, let us know how it goes today,.

Becky, repo mod

, repo grad

>

> I would say that it depends upon the type of specialist. In our

case, we

> first saw a medical doctor and then were referred to the orthotist

to assess

> if a band would be beneficial.

>

>

>

> The medical doctor was at Kennedy Krieger Institute Cranial

Cervical Clinic.

> There, she took a history and examined her head. She also looked for

> asymmetry and watched some of 's movements to see if she saw

any

> problems. We were also supposed to meet with the PT for an exam,

but our

> insurance wouldn't cover it and it would have been about 600

dollars, so we

> declined this portion. I was told that the PT normally does

measurements to

> judge the severity. This doctor confirmed the diagnosis, provided us

> information about brachycephaly and explained our options. She wrote

> prescriptions for both physical therapy (for cranial sacral

therapy) and for

> the helmet. She gave us referrals on where to go. I understand that

> pediatricians can also write these prescriptions, but ours sent us

to the

> specialist. My questions here were about the long term effects of

not

> correcting the head shape, chances for improvement, what banding

typically

> involved.

>

>

>

> Then, we went to Star Cranial, which is where she got her band.

They took

> another history, reviewed the information they received from the

doctor and

> then scanned her head. We were told she was at 95 percent, which is

> moderate. We were given the option to band her, but cautioned

against hoping

> for too much because she was already 14 months old. We asked

questions about

> cost, usual insurance coverage, procedures for monitoring the band,

etc.

>

>

>

> If I were to do it again, I would have called my insurance company

directly

> to ask questions and speed up the process. We found out late in the

process,

> that a Hanger band would have been covered. By the time we found

this out,

> she was already 14.5 months old and to wait longer for the process

with

> Hanger would have hindered our chances for progress, so we paid out

of

> pocket for the STARband since we could get her banded faster this

way. She

> was one week away from 15 months at her fitting.

>

>

>

> Hope this helps.

>

>

>

> , mom to , 17 months 1 week

>

> 11 weeks in STARband plus CST

>

>

>

> going to see doc what questions should I ask/

tests to

> expect??

>

>

>

> I am going on wednesday to take my son to the specialist to get his

> positional plagio looked at for the first time. My husband is unable

> to go with me so I dont know what kind of questions I should be

> asking. I dont know if he will need a helmet or whatever cause the

> last specialist when I asked him how bad it was he said it would

> probably be a 4 on a scale from one to 10 so he referred me to this

> doc. His ears are off set and on the top of his forehead there is a

> hump and its not as bad now in the back. What should I expect at

this

> appt as far as tests and all that and like I said before what

should I

> ask?

>

[Guest guest]

I just went through a visit this week with our daughter at a specialist to have her flat

head examined. I'm sure everyone's experience is different but this is how ours went:

- we met with a children's plastic surgeon who initially examined her head

- then we met with a physical therapist who spent a lot of time exmaining our daughter

for torticollis and gave us simple things we could do to help strengthen her muscles (such as carry her in a football hold or flying position)

- then she had her head measured through a computer scan that takes less than 30 seconds. In no time they generated a 3d image of her head.

- we then met with a specialist who interperted the computer scan

- we met with an ortho specialist who talked about the pros and cons of having our child wear a helmet

- finally we met with the plastic surgeon who gave his recommendations

It's pretty overwhelming. I had no idea what to expect but the whole visit took almost 2 hours. You'll receive tons of info all at once that will be hard to digest immediately. If it is recommended that your child wear a helmet, the problem is the scan is only good for two days (because babies heads grow so quickly). The helmet costs $4,100 and we're in the process of contacting our insurance company how much it will cover. I don't think we're going to make the deadline because of the redtape with our insurance company.

If you can find out ahead of time how much your insurance will cover for durable medical equipment, that would put you ahead of the game.

The specialist will send the info from the scan to your peditrician. I would recommend after you leave the specialist to call your peditrician and see what he or she thinks just to get another opinion.

Hope this helps as I just went through what you're going to go through.

Steve

Plagiocephaly From: res103198@...Date: Wed, 4 Feb 2009 13:30:42 +0000Subject: Re: going to see doc what questions should I ask/ tests to expect??

http://www.cappskids.org/QuestionsForTheDoctorAndOrthotist.htmThis link takes you to a list of questions to ask to various dr's and specialists. Check it out. If you think it will help, you can print it out and then add your own quetions to it. I know that I find it is easier to remember what I want to ask the dr if I write it down. So maybe having the list with you will help. it might also show the dr that you have done your research as well.HTH, let us know how it goes today,.Becky, repo mod, repo grad>> I would say that it depends upon the type of specialist. In our case, we> first saw a medical doctor and then were referred to the orthotist to assess> if a band would be beneficial.> > > > The medical doctor was at Kennedy Krieger Institute Cranial Cervical Clinic.> There, she took a history and examined her head. She also looked for> asymmetry and watched some of 's movements to see if she saw any> problems. We were also supposed to meet with the PT for an exam, but our> insurance wouldn't cover it and it would have been about 600 dollars, so we> declined this portion. I was told that the PT normally does measurements to> judge the severity. This doctor confirmed the diagnosis, provided us> information about brachycephaly and explained our options. She wrote> prescriptions for both physical therapy (for cranial sacral therapy) and for> the helmet. She gave us referrals on where to go. I understand that> pediatricians can also write these prescriptions, but ours sent us to the> specialist. My questions here were about the long term effects of not> correcting the head shape, chances for improvement, what banding typically> involved. > > > > Then, we went to Star Cranial, which is where she got her band. They took> another history, reviewed the information they received from the doctor and> then scanned her head. We were told she was at 95 percent, which is> moderate. We were given the option to band her, but cautioned against hoping> for too much because she was already 14 months old. We asked questions about> cost, usual insurance coverage, procedures for monitoring the band, etc. > > > > If I were to do it again, I would have called my insurance company directly> to ask questions and speed up the process. We found out late in the process,> that a Hanger band would have been covered. By the time we found this out,> she was already 14.5 months old and to wait longer for the process with> Hanger would have hindered our chances for progress, so we paid out of> pocket for the STARband since we could get her banded faster this way. She> was one week away from 15 months at her fitting. > > > > Hope this helps. > > > > , mom to , 17 months 1 week> > 11 weeks in STARband plus CST> > > > going to see doc what questions should I ask/ tests to> expect??> > > > I am going on wednesday to take my son to the specialist to get his> positional plagio looked at for the first time. My husband is unable> to go with me so I dont know what kind of questions I should be> asking. I dont know if he will need a helmet or whatever cause the> last specialist when I asked him how bad it was he said it would> probably be a 4 on a scale from one to 10 so he referred me to this> doc. His ears are off set and on the top of his forehead there is a> hump and its not as bad now in the back. What should I expect at this> appt as far as tests and all that and like I said before what should I> ask?> Windows Live™: E-mail. Chat. Share. Get more ways to connect. Check it out.

[Guest guest]

Steve,

$4,100 seems a bit expensive for a helmet. Where are you getting it from?

Leila

Maysa, 1 year old, day 3 in DOC band

http://mymaysa.wordpress.com/

From: stephen repsys <repsys@...>Subject: RE: going to see doc what questions should I ask/ tests to expect??plagiocephaly Date: Wednesday, February 4, 2009, 9:04 AM

I just went through a visit this week with our daughter at a specialist to have her flat head examined. I'm sure everyone's experience is different but this is how ours went: - we met with a children's plastic surgeon who initially examined her head- then we met with a physical therapist who spent a lot of time exmaining our daughterfor torticollis and gave us simple things we could do to help strengthen her muscles (such as carry her in a football hold or flying position)- then she had her head measured through a computer scan that takes less than 30 seconds. In no time they generated a 3d image of her head. - we then met with a specialist who interperted the computer scan- we met with an ortho specialist who talked about the pros and cons of having our child wear a helmet- finally we met with the plastic surgeon who gave his recommendations It's pretty overwhelming. I had no idea what to expect

but the whole visit took almost 2 hours. You'll receive tons of info all at once that will be hard to digest immediately. If it is recommended that your child wear a helmet, the problem is the scan is only good for two days (because babies heads grow so quickly). The helmet costs $4,100 and we're in the process of contacting our insurance company how much it will cover. I don't think we're going to make the deadline because of the redtape with our insurance company. If you can find out ahead of time how much your insurance will cover for durable medical equipment, that would put you ahead of the game. The specialist will send the info from the scan to your peditrician. I would recommend after you leave the specialist to call your peditrician and see what he or she thinks just to get another opinion. Hope this helps as I just went through what you're going to go through. Steve

PlagiocephalyFrom: res103198 (DOT) comDate: Wed, 4 Feb 2009 13:30:42 +0000Subject: Re: going to see doc what questions should I ask/ tests to expect??

http://www.cappskid s.org/QuestionsF orTheDoctorAndOr thotist.htmThis link takes you to a list of questions to ask to various dr's and specialists. Check it out. If you think it will help, you can print it out and then add your own quetions to it. I know that I find it is easier to remember what I want to ask the dr if I write it down. So maybe having the list with you will help. it might also show the dr that you have done your research as well.HTH, let us know how it goes today,.Becky, repo mod, repo grad>> I would say that it depends upon the type of specialist. In our case, we> first saw a medical doctor and then were referred to the orthotist to assess> if a band would be beneficial.> >

> > The medical doctor was at Kennedy Krieger Institute Cranial Cervical Clinic.> There, she took a history and examined her head. She also looked for> asymmetry and watched some of 's movements to see if she saw any> problems. We were also supposed to meet with the PT for an exam, but our> insurance wouldn't cover it and it would have been about 600 dollars, so we> declined this portion. I was told that the PT normally does measurements to> judge the severity. This doctor confirmed the diagnosis, provided us> information about brachycephaly and explained our options. She wrote> prescriptions for both physical therapy (for cranial sacral therapy) and for> the helmet. She gave us referrals on where to go. I understand that> pediatricians can also write these prescriptions, but ours sent us to the> specialist. My questions here

were about the long term effects of not> correcting the head shape, chances for improvement, what banding typically> involved. > > > > Then, we went to Star Cranial, which is where she got her band. They took> another history, reviewed the information they received from the doctor and> then scanned her head. We were told she was at 95 percent, which is> moderate. We were given the option to band her, but cautioned against hoping> for too much because she was already 14 months old. We asked questions about> cost, usual insurance coverage, procedures for monitoring the band, etc. > > > > If I were to do it again, I would have called my insurance company directly> to ask questions and speed up the process. We found out late in the process,> that a Hanger band would have been covered. By the time we found

this out,> she was already 14.5 months old and to wait longer for the process with> Hanger would have hindered our chances for progress, so we paid out of> pocket for the STARband since we could get her banded faster this way. She> was one week away from 15 months at her fitting. > > > > Hope this helps. > > > > , mom to , 17 months 1 week> > 11 weeks in STARband plus CST> > > > going to see doc what questions should I ask/ tests to> expect??> > >

> I am going on wednesday to take my son to the specialist to get his> positional plagio looked at for the first time. My husband is unable> to go with me so I dont know what kind of questions I should be> asking. I dont know if he will need a helmet or whatever cause the> last specialist when I asked him how bad it was he said it would> probably be a 4 on a scale from one to 10 so he referred me to this> doc. His ears are off set and on the top of his forehead there is a> hump and its not as bad now in the back. What should I expect at this> appt as far as tests and all that and like I said before what should I> ask?>

Windows Live™: E-mail. Chat. Share. Get more ways to connect. Check it out.

[Guest guest]

I believe its a Starbarnd helmet.

Plagiocephaly From: leilarem@...Date: Wed, 4 Feb 2009 08:36:42 -0800Subject: RE: going to see doc what questions should I ask/ tests to expect??

Steve,

$4,100 seems a bit expensive for a helmet. Where are you getting it from?

Leila

Maysa, 1 year old, day 3 in DOC band

http://mymaysa.wordpress.com/

From: stephen repsys <repsyshotmail>Subject: RE: going to see doc what questions should I ask/ tests to expect??plagiocephaly Date: Wednesday, February 4, 2009, 9:04 AM

I just went through a visit this week with our daughter at a specialist to have her flat head examined. I'm sure everyone's experience is different but this is how ours went: - we met with a children's plastic surgeon who initially examined her head- then we met with a physical therapist who spent a lot of time exmaining our daughterfor torticollis and gave us simple things we could do to help strengthen her muscles (such as carry her in a football hold or flying position)- then she had her head measured through a computer scan that takes less than 30 seconds. In no time they generated a 3d image of her head. - we then met with a specialist who interperted the computer scan- we met with an ortho specialist who talked about the pros and cons of having our child wear a helmet- finally we met with the plastic surgeon who gave his recommendations It's pretty overwhelming. I had no idea what to expect but the whole visit took almost 2 hours. You'll receive tons of info all at once that will be hard to digest immediately. If it is recommended that your child wear a helmet, the problem is the scan is only good for two days (because babies heads grow so quickly). The helmet costs $4,100 and we're in the process of contacting our insurance company how much it will cover. I don't think we're going to make the deadline because of the redtape with our insurance company. If you can find out ahead of time how much your insurance will cover for durable medical equipment, that would put you ahead of the game. The specialist will send the info from the scan to your peditrician. I would recommend after you leave the specialist to call your peditrician and see what he or she thinks just to get another opinion. Hope this helps as I just went through what you're going to go through. Steve

PlagiocephalyFrom: res103198 (DOT) comDate: Wed, 4 Feb 2009 13:30:42 +0000Subject: Re: going to see doc what questions should I ask/ tests to expect??

http://www.cappskid s.org/QuestionsF orTheDoctorAndOr thotist.htmThis link takes you to a list of questions to ask to various dr's and specialists. Check it out. If you think it will help, you can print it out and then add your own quetions to it. I know that I find it is easier to remember what I want to ask the dr if I write it down. So maybe having the list with you will help. it might also show the dr that you have done your research as well.HTH, let us know how it goes today,.Becky, repo mod, repo grad>> I would say that it depends upon the type of specialist. In our case, we> first saw a medical doctor and then were referred to the orthotist to assess> if a band would be beneficial.> > > > The medical doctor was at Kennedy Krieger Institute Cranial Cervical Clinic.> There, she took a history and examined her head. She also looked for> asymmetry and watched some of 's movements to see if she saw any> problems. We were also supposed to meet with the PT for an exam, but our> insurance wouldn't cover it and it would have been about 600 dollars, so we> declined this portion. I was told that the PT normally does measurements to> judge the severity. This doctor confirmed the diagnosis, provided us> information about brachycephaly and explained our options. She wrote> prescriptions for both physical therapy (for cranial sacral therapy) and for> the helmet. She gave us referrals on where to go. I understand that> pediatricians can also write these prescriptions, but ours sent us to the> specialist. My questions here were about the long term effects of not> correcting the head shape, chances for improvement, what banding typically> involved. > > > > Then, we went to Star Cranial, which is where she got her band. They took> another history, reviewed the information they received from the doctor and> then scanned her head. We were told she was at 95 percent, which is> moderate. We were given the option to band her, but cautioned against hoping> for too much because she was already 14 months old. We asked questions about> cost, usual insurance coverage, procedures for monitoring the band, etc. > > > > If I were to do it again, I would have called my insurance company directly> to ask questions and speed up the process. We found out late in the process,> that a Hanger band would have been covered. By the time we found this out,> she was already 14.5 months old and to wait longer for the process with> Hanger would have hindered our chances for progress, so we paid out of> pocket for the STARband since we could get her banded faster this way. She> was one week away from 15 months at her fitting. > > > > Hope this helps. > > > > , mom to , 17 months 1 week> > 11 weeks in STARband plus CST> > > > going to see doc what questions should I ask/ tests to> expect??> > > > I am going on wednesday to take my son to the specialist to get his> positional plagio looked at for the first time. My husband is unable> to go with me so I dont know what kind of questions I should be> asking. I dont know if he will need a helmet or whatever cause the> last specialist when I asked him how bad it was he said it would> probably be a 4 on a scale from one to 10 so he referred me to this> doc. His ears are off set and on the top of his forehead there is a> hump and its not as bad now in the back. What should I expect at this> appt as far as tests and all that and like I said before what should I> ask?>

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