Re: Re: Brachy but otherwise symmetric

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,

I did reply to that post yesterday. I've attached again below. I have no idea what the Boston Band looks like so it's hard for me to picture it, but I said what I had to say about Maysa's band now which is working like a charm!

"Ana-,

My daughter's second DOC band is only treating her brachy. At our first adjustment appointment, her orthotist drew a vertical rectangle on the foam with a marker (I think) and said that from now on, she will be shaving the foam inside that rectangle to allow the growth to be redirected in the back. Everything else stays unshaved. Also, Maysa's 2nd band looks different in the sense that it covers the back top of her head a lot more than the first band, which she also wore to correct her plagio. She is 14 months old now and it seems like her growth is slowing down, but I can still see changes in the way the back of her head looks.

Whenever we go for adjustments, a little bit gets shaved and the band feels looser for a day or two. This said, it i so nicely curved in the back that I don't think that it could ever come out on its own. Also, the holding points are holding on tight.

I hope this helps,

Leila

Maysa, 14 months old, week 8 in DOC band 2

http://mymaysa. wordpress. com/ "

From: <nwilkens2275@...>Subject: Re: Brachy but otherwise symmetricPlagiocephaly Date: Wednesday, March 25, 2009, 2:17 PM

DOCBands and STARBands (and some others) are different from Boston bands in that the foam liner is one piece and to adjust it, the ortho/therapist actually shaves out small portions of the foam at each adjustment. From what I know about Boston bands, they are made with layered foam that is peeled out where needed, correct? If a baby has brachy and is wearing a DOC or STARband, I believe the foam is shaved out evenly across the back to promote even growth of the head. However, I don't believe it's necessarily shaved out all the way from the top to the nape of the neck. It still has to hold the head, particularly at the crown (top rear) where there is typically too much height/slope to the head. Also, from what I know about heads, the growth is pretty global starting from about the midpoint (occiput) and spreading outward (up and down). So I'm not sure why your ortho would just be concentrating on the bottom. I guess the bottom is harder to

pop out because it's part of the skull base, which is made up of smaller bones, but I would think (not being an expert) that if the plagio is corrected and the back of the head is currently symmetrical but still flat, the whole back should be hollowed out (maybe not completely, but definitely evenly), otherwise, I would think the head would start growing assymetrically again.Leila-if you're reading this, could you also respond? Cause I know you have a band treating just the brachy right now. Thanks!Jake-2.5 (DOCBand Grad 9/08)Jordan-5>> I posted an email about our NOPCO visit mostly with progress but I don't know that I even asked the right

questions and didn't get answers so I'll try again. My son has the NOPCO Boston band. Let's just say that that plagio has resolved and I just want to treat the brachy. His cephalic index is 92%.> > Is there anyone out there (and I don't know how he DOC and Star bands look internally) who has a horizontal part of the foam hollowed out to allow just the bottom half of the head to pop out? > > Is there anyone out there who has the entire back of the helmet hollowed out to allow the entire back of the head to pop out? > > I was told they can't do that because then the whole helmet can lift off and be loose or fall of the head. > > If this is true how do you treat brachy? Any ideas?> > Ana-> mommy to Octavian 7.5 months, > Boston Band since 2/22/09>

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I was insisting that the ortho focus on the back and my own opinion wished to have the bottom pop out more. And yes the Boston band is all layers that can be peeled. My son is wearing his band less than 50% of the time now. We have the plastic surgeon appt next Thu and all ask them to addess it then. I am ready to be done with this. I know they are going to give me so much resistance because his head looks "good" but his cephalic index is still 92% and that bothers me. I hope I'm not doing damage by keeping it off. From: "" Date: Wed, 25 Mar 2009 18:17:25 -0000<Plagiocephaly >Subject: Re: Brachy but otherwise symmetric DOCBands and STARBands (and some others) are different from Boston bands in that the foam liner is one piece and to adjust it, the ortho/therapist actually shaves out small portions of the foam at each adjustment. From what I know about Boston bands, they are made with layered foam that is peeled out where needed, correct? If a baby has brachy and is wearing a DOC or STARband, I believe the foam is shaved out evenly across the back to promote even growth of the head. However, I don't believe it's necessarily shaved out all the way from the top to the nape of the neck. It still has to hold the head, particularly at the crown (top rear) where there is typically too much height/slope to the head. Also, from what I know about heads, the growth is pretty global starting from about the midpoint (occiput) and spreading outward (up and down). So I'm not sure why your ortho would just be concentrating on the bottom. I guess the bottom is harder to pop out because it's part of the skull base, which is made up of smaller bones, but I would think (not being an expert) that if the plagio is corrected and the back of the head is currently symmetrical but still flat, the whole back should be hollowed out (maybe not completely, but definitely evenly), otherwise, I would think the head would start growing assymetrically again. Leila-if you're reading this, could you also respond? Cause I know you have a band treating just the brachy right now. Thanks! Jake-2.5 (DOCBand Grad 9/08) Jordan-5 > > I posted an email about our NOPCO visit mostly with progress but I don't know that I even asked the right questions and didn't get answers so I'll try again. My son has the NOPCO Boston band. Let's just say that that plagio has resolved and I just want to treat the brachy. His cephalic index is 92%. > > Is there anyone out there (and I don't know how he DOC and Star bands look internally) who has a horizontal part of the foam hollowed out to allow just the bottom half of the head to pop out? > > Is there anyone out there who has the entire back of the helmet hollowed out to allow the entire back of the head to pop out? > > I was told they can't do that because then the whole helmet can lift off and be loose or fall of the head. > > If this is true how do you treat brachy? Any ideas? > > Ana- > mommy to Octavian 7.5 months, > Boston Band since 2/22/09 >