Persistent rotation

[Guest guest]

I was poking around Orthoamerica's site and by chance happened upon

this FAQ:

> *How should Orthomerica orthoses fit on my baby's head?*

> During the first two weeks of orthotic treatment, the cranial

> orthosis may shift around on your baby's head, especially if your

> baby has a head shape that is asymmetrical. While this may require

> the caregivers to frequently reposition the band, rotation is not

> unusual during this early treatment time as the asymmetrical head

> adjusts to the more symmetrical shape of the cranial orthosis. The

> orthosis may require an adjustment earlier than your scheduled

> appointment if the band rotates and blocks vision, rubs against

> either ear of if you notice skin problems. Contact your orthotist

> with any questions or concerns any time during the treatment

> process. After two weeks of 23 hour wearing time, any rotation

> should be minimal.

>

I wonder what the opinion of the group is as to the effect of

continually re-positioning a rotating helmet? Does it deform the

foam, or just the head? Has anyone actually improved a rotating

helmet just by doing this?

I personally haven't bothered, because Clara's helmet just goes out

of position again immediately, except on rare occasions when it's

nearly time to shave it out again, a few days before the closure

starts twisting out of alignment. Today I gave Clara's helmet a

football-style whack with my fist when it was riding up her forehead,

and it magically smacked right down into the perfect orientation! So

this would seem to be the second such period of opportunity for me to

do as the FAQ suggests. Clara's helmet continues to hit her most

rearward ear most of the time, though it is stationary and minimal

enough in impact to allow a favorable interpretation of the " rubbing "

criterion.

What I find most disingenuous is this: aren't a sizable minority, if

not the majority, of plagio babies' heads still very asymmetrical

after only two weeks in a helmet?

With my older baby, and considering her parallelogram head, I'm

willing to consider two /months/, rather than two /weeks/, as the

" early treatment time. " I'm letting the orthotist off the hook as

far as pursuing adjustments to correct the rotation, because I do

like the results I'm seeing. He added a little foam to one corner

initially, and I can't think of anything that would work better

without pushing on her head in an inappropriate place, so -- could it

be true? -- yes, I think I do actually *trust* someone!

--

Thad Launderville

Montpelier, VT

Clara age 18 months, STARband since 8/10

On Oct 5, 2009, at 11:24 AM, christineashok wrote:

> hopefully your guy is good, and he really can see what he is doing.

> although the part about putting it on his head how he wants it to

> sit vs. how it really sits isn't that encouraging :-)

> I notice [the orthotist] always places the helmet how he wants it

> to sit, rather than how it actually sits, when evaluating the fit.