Re: Going to a specialist without a referral

[Guest guest]

Hi Leila-

I just wanted to chime in that I went to a specialist without

telling my ped, and I did feel awkward about it at first but she

ended up being understanding and supportive. And if she hadn't been,

I would have found another ped.

I go to CT in Charlotte and would recommend the company to anyone. I

have never heard of ECA before. What helmet do they use? And is it

FDA approved? It concerns me when other orthos refer to the DOCBand

and similar bands as " passive. " The definition of an active band is

that there is an applied pressure to the prominent areas to hold

them in place and allow for growth in the flat areas. Adjustments

are made to the active band periodically to open up more space for

the flat areas to grow. A passive band is a simple shell helmet that

you place on the baby's head and basically forget about for a few

months until the head has grown into the shape of that helmet. No,

the helmets don't move on their own, but that's not what " active "

means in this case. It has more to do with the job of the ortho,

whether they take an active role or passive role in the reshaping of

the head. I don't like when they use the terminology incorrectly,

especially when they are speaking for a helmet that is not their

own. That's just my two cents. It's good that you're going to both

places for evals to get a feel for which one you like best. I would

just check on the FDA approval and ask ECA to see some before and

after photos, and/or to get a referral of one of their patients.

Good luck!

Jake-21m (tort resolved/rt plagio/DOCBand #2 2 weeks)

Jordan-4

> >

> > Hi everybody,

> >

> > I am brand new to this group and the reason I joined is because

I

> > feel that my little 5 months old daughter needs a helmet to

correct

> > her Plagiocephaly. We've noticed it when she was about 1 and 1/2

> > month old and also noticed that her head was titled and

constantly

> > turned to the right.

> >

> > At her 2 months old visit, the doctor gave us some neck

streching

> > exercises to do at home and told us to reposition her to her

left

> > side when she slept. She also said that her head would round up

> > eventually.

> >

> > At her 4 months old visit, another doctor just says the same

thing,

> > not to worry that it will round up. In the meantime, although

her

> > head shape has changed since the first time we've noticed it, it

is

> > not round at all and her head still tilts slightly to the right,

> > never to the left.

> >

> > I am tired of waiting and not really seeing any improvement. We

were

> > not even referred to a PT to treat her torticollis even less a

> > specialist in helmets. Therefore, I schedule my own.

> >

> > My first appointment is this Wednesday with Cranial Technologies

in

> > ndale. We are also checking Eastern Cranial Technologies in

> > Falls Church next Wednesday.

> >

> > What worries me is that she doesn't qualify for helmet. I have a

> > hard time measuring her from the nose to the left and right ear.

> > There doesn't seem to be more than 5mm difference, yet, the

right

> > back side of her head is flat...

> >

> > Also, does the helmet correct the torticollis? Has anybody gone

to

> > both CT and ECA and preferred one over the other?

> >

> > Please help me figure out what to do before it's too late.

> >

> > Thanks,

> > Leila

> >

>