Tips for Speeding up the Process?

[Guest guest]

Hi all. I've just joined and have learned so much from perusing this group's

postings. What a nice support group.

A quick recap of my son's plagio history: At 3 months we noticed a flat spot

developing. Mentioned it to the Dr., who said it would go away w/ tummy time

and once he started rolling around. It didn't. Over the course of the next 4

months, I also asked two different nurse practitioner and another doctor in the

office about the flattening. All said it was nothing to be worried about and

would probably correct itself in time, or " it would just be like that forever. "

I even asked about whether we needed a helmet (I was unfamiliar with plagio, but

knew of some babies who had worn helmets) and was told no. I started to forget

about his head shape. Fast forward to Thanksgiving, when our visit to out of

town relatives led my Sister-in-law (who works in the medical field) to notice

's head shape and tell us we should get a second opinion, and quickly.

So this week I've poured over all the plagio info on the Internet, and I feel

certain that he has positional plagiocephaly, and likely at least a moderate

case of it. I am just sick about the fact that it's taken me so long to do this

research and angry that I listened to doctors who clearly didn't know what they

were talking about. How to deal with the guilt?

We have an appt. set up with a reputable pediatric neurologist here in

Sacramento next Friday. My main concern now is that this process will all move

too slowly and delay what is already a late start for banding. He turned 8

months old this week. Any tips on things I could do to speed up the process?

Should I call my insurance provider (United Healthcare) in advance of our Dr.'s

office to inquire about their coverage of cranial orthotics? Is there usually a

long wait at places that do fittings for Starbands (in our area) or DOCbands

(our nearest CranialTech is in Pasadena, 6 hours away--yikes.)? If so, perhaps

I should try to make an appt. now so that it will be already set up if/when the

neurologist sends us that direction. I just hate that we waited so long to take

action, and now fear that the laborious process of getting this all going will

cut into the months of prime effectiveness for banding.

Sorry for the long message. Any advice that anyone can give on speeding up the

process and/or dealing with UHC would be helpful and much appreciated. I read

UHC's medical policy about plagiocephaly online and it states that " Cranial

orthotic devices are cosmetic in infants with mild to moderate plagiocephaly.

There are no definitive data demonstrating that there are adverse health effects

associated with a mild to moderate degree of cranial asymmetry, and, therefore,

it is unclear whether treatment of these individuals provides a future health

benefit, or merely a cosmetic effect. " Doesn't sound good for our chances of

insurance paying.

Thanks for your help! I think this group is going to be a great help to me as

we navigate this road.