Re: How do you know they need a band?

[Guest guest]

Hello,

From what you describe, it sounds as though something may be misaligned. I would definately recommend getting evaluated by a chiropractor so that things will not go back even if you do band. Also, are you seeing a physical therapist? They can really help with stretches.

About the band, you still have time to fix this without it, but I would go ahead and get the process started now. You will need to get evaluated by a place that does helmets. You will also need a prescription. Google cranial technologies, orthoamerica, and Hanger to see which locations are close to you. These are the three most popular bands. If none of them are close, maybe you can post your location and people can let you know if they know of somewhere close.

http://redesign.cranialtech.com/index.php?option=com_content & view=category & layout=blog & id=69 & Itemid=53 cranial technology locations

http://www.orthomerica.com/technology/scan_locations.htm orthoamerica or STARband locations that use the scanner - there may be others that don't use the scanner.

As far as a specialist goes, you won't get much support for banding from a neurosurgeon, but if there is concern about the sutures fusing, you should rule this out. There are other types of specialists out there. In my area, we went to a "cranial cervical clinic" that specifically evaluates flat heads, among other things. Some use cranial facial specialists. You'll need to find out what is used in your area. If you pediatrician is willing to write a prescription and you know you want a helmet, you can skip this step. Because my daughter was older (12 months), my pediatrician wanted a specialist to determine whether it was too late for the band.

Congratulations on asking the question now. I wish that I had done so at 4 months of age.

I hope this helps.

, mom to , 26 months

STARband grad May 2009

Chiro and CST

land

How do you know they need a band?

Hi -I'm new here. My son, Silas, is almost 4 months old. He has a flat area on the rear right side of his head. We're waiting to see if he's going to need to be banded... instinct says there is a fair chance he will, but we don't know yet.There were some indications just after his birth that there was something going on - he looked to the right most of the time from the very beginning, and his jaw seemed a little lopsided. Nothing was said at the time about it. He had some issues with breastfeeding in the first weeks - shaking his head, clamping down, and frequent pulling off. We did cranialsacral therapy for it, which seemed to help. The therapist pointed out that he had some asymmetry in his skull (forehead more prominent on the right side especially), and did a few things to try to address it. I've since read that if a woman has serious pain in one hip and tailbone, that there could be some kind of positioning restriction. He went head-down early and the hip pain started a couple of weeks later, so I wonder if this process got started weeks before his birth. As far as doctors, I was not happy with the first pediatrician we went to, for a variety of reasons. About his head and neck, all the old pediatrician said at 2 months was to get him to turn his head to both the right and the left, nothing about the developing flatness (which we hadn't picked up on yet), etc. We switched pediatricians by the time he was 3 months old. Silas will look to either side now, although he still has a preference to look right. And more worrisome to me, he tilts the upper left side of his head to the left, so his head often appears crooked. That part of it seems like it might be a little worse, possibly.But by 3 months, we had started noticing a more significant flatness on the right side of the back of his head as well as the prominence of his right forehead. I like the new pediatrician much more, fortunately, and he immediately flagged the torticollis and flat area. Apparently he is very proactive about possible plagiocephaly cases, and gave me a sheet with exercises we need to do for his neck, the need to greatly increase his tummy time, etc. (I've heard that other moms of similar-aged babies have all gotten the "tummy time speech" from this particular doctor.)I want to say that his flat area has improved a little in the last couple of weeks since that appointment, but maybe it's just wishful thinking. And I just don't know if doing just more tummy time, upright time, and the neck exercises will be enough. How do I know? How insistent should I be on getting him evaluated by a specialist doctor and/or a place that makes the bands, rather than another couple of months of wait-and-see? I am not thrilled with the idea of him having to get banded, but if he really does need it and it can't be avoided, I'd rather get it done at a younger age so hopefully we can get it over with in a fairly short amount of time. But the question is, how do we know if we should be progressing quickly to the band so as to not lose time?And what about doing more CST and/or chiropractic care to try to help the situation, either before banding (possibly to try to avoid banding), or in conjunction with banding? Can anyone offer any insight into this possible path?I know I should post some pictures, I just haven't had a chance to get some good ones of his head. I'll try to do it tomorrow, if possible.I also just want to say thank you to everyone who has been posting - it's been helpful already just in the last couple of weeks to read about people's experiences and perspectives related to plagiocephaly and torticollis.For now, we're doing the positioning, stretches, and tummy time, and waiting for his 4-month appointment in a couple of weeks, at which time I will be discussing the plagio/tort issues in a lot more detail with the pediatrician to determine next steps. Any insight on how you came to realize that your baby had an issue that required more than just neck exercises and repositioning (whether or not the baby did eventually get a helmet) would be greatly appreciated.Thank you for reading my long intro, and for any feedback you may be able to give me.--