Guest guest Posted February 2, 2011 Report Share Posted February 2, 2011 Hi everyone. My 4.5 year old son was just diagnosed with plagiocephaly and we are starting physical therapy and looking into helmet therapy. Doctors and physical therapist talk about wedges and positioners for sleep time but do not give specific brands. I'm not sure what to try. My son has flattening on his left side so he needs to be tilted to sleep on his right side. I'm worried about SIDS and all of the information saying don't put anything in the crib. Any suggestions or feedback would be appreciated. I feel stuck between trying to help the flattening and fear about SIDS. I also have an appointment for helmet therapy on Friday. Any key questions I should ask? Are some types of helmets better than others? (star band or DOC Band)? Thanks, Virginia Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted February 2, 2011 Report Share Posted February 2, 2011 Hi Virginia, I don't think there is a definite way to say what is safe except for nothing in the crib. One thing I have heard of is stuffing a sock, or rolling up a small blanket then sewing it to the pajamas so it can't move while he is sleeping (it would go under the shoulder on the flat side to encourage his head to flop to the opposite side). It sounds safe to me, but you will have to decide. If you're not comfortable with something don't do it. Also some people use an angel care monitor so that if the child stops breathing/moving an alarm will go off. I never felt this was necessary, but some people really appreciate having it. Also concentrate on keeping him off his head when not sleeping. Use a baby carrier or bumbo chair. Don't use swing, or bouncer, or keep him in the car seat unless he is traveling in the car. This keep pressure off the head. Also lots of tummy time is good. If he doesn't like it do a lot of short tummy times until he tolerates it better, and give him toys or play with him so it is fun. As for helmet therapy, one good thing is it doesn't matter how they sleep. My daughter wore a starband. There are also hanger bands which are similar to starbands. Docbands are a bit lighter weight, but the idea is the same. They all are custom made for the head with a layer of foam inside. The band is made to hold the prominent areas more tightly and allow room to grow where the head is flat. There are other brands too, but less widely used, and some orthos make their own. In any case make sure the ortho or clinic you are working with has good experience in banding. Cranial Tech (docband) does only banding but many star or hanger orthos do other types of work. Experience is important in getting good results. We went to a very experienced starband ortho and had good results. -christine sydney, 5 yrs, starband grad > > Hi everyone. My 4.5 year old son was just diagnosed with plagiocephaly and we are starting physical therapy and looking into helmet therapy. Doctors and physical therapist talk about wedges and positioners for sleep time but do not give specific brands. I'm not sure what to try. My son has flattening on his left side so he needs to be tilted to sleep on his right side. I'm worried about SIDS and all of the information saying don't put anything in the crib. Any suggestions or feedback would be appreciated. I feel stuck between trying to help the flattening and fear about SIDS. > > I also have an appointment for helmet therapy on Friday. Any key questions I should ask? Are some types of helmets better than others? (star band or DOC Band)? > > > Thanks, > Virginia > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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