Re: WORRIED FOR OUR BABY'S HEAD

[Guest guest]

In the past I have seen toronto parents in this group, but not sure who is

active at the moment. Even in the US doctors can really be obnoxious about this.

Heads don't magically correct by age 2, but somehow many doctors are convinced

that they do. My daughter got a lot of improvement in her band, and graduated at

10 mo. After banding her head grew but honestly I don't think it improved. So

where is the magic correction? She's now 4.5 and I can't imagine if we had

skipped banding. She looks fine, but with wet hair I can definitely see her head

is not perfect.

I think you will have to push and find a doctor that supports you, and is

willing to treat your baby. If you would like to post pictures to get an opinion

of severity from the group feel free. However if you see it is getting worse I

believe you. I think the pictures are a great idea, even if this doctor won't

look at them. I just did a brief search of old messages with " toronto " and found

that people have got bands at Sick Kids Hospital before. Not sure if that is

where your consult was. You can search messages online (from the group's web

page).

-christine

sydney, 4.5 yrs, starband grad

>

> Anyone from the Toronto area in this group?

> Our baby boy is 5.5 months old. When he was 3 months we notice some flatness

on the back of his head and we decided to put him to sleep on his sides rather

than on his back. But now his head is still flat on the back and on the right

side. We took pictures and see that it is getting worse.

>

> We have seen Dr. who dismissed our concern and said by the time he is 2 years

old it should heal on it's own but she really did not properly check him or look

at the progressionary pictures we took. We are going to see our family Dr.

Monday and are worried that she will also not be concerned. We are so scared

that we can't get a referal for treatent when we see it progressing worse over

the past 2 months. We are worried that if she does not see his flatness where

we can go to get the needed referal.

>

> Does anyone have any advise or had a similar circumstance?

>

[Guest guest]

This is one of the most common scenarios we hear repeatedly from our parents.

Parents raise concerns to the family physician/pediatrician about their child's

flat head and they are repeatedly told don't worry it will re-model on its own.

Finally the docs end up making the referral when the child is now 12 to 14

months old and has not corrected. The parents are devastated to learn from the

orthotist that they should have been assessed when they were 4 to 5 months old

and chances for optimal correction have passed. The parents are never very happy

in the end.

The decision to have your child assessed to see if they require a helmet is your

decision not the physicians. Certainly you need to see your family physician and

express your concern about your child's head shape and you would like to be

referred for assessment. Be polite but firm on your request for the assessment.

At the same time you should also be contacting the Orthotics department at The

Hospital for Sick Children and see if they will assess your child so that you

can get some base line measurements. Once you know how severe your discrepancy

is then you will be better able to decide what your next move will be.

Sick Kids will not start treatment until your child is 6 months old but I my

opinion you are missing out on some of the best corrective re-modeling time.

If Sick Kids will not assess you until the 6 month mark and you do not want to

wait then contact the Prosthetic & Orthotic Department at Chedoke Hospital in

Hamilton (905-521-2607) and we will provide you with the base line measurements

you need to decide if your child's requires a helmet or not.

Take care and don't delay any further.

Mike Hall

Certified Orthotist

Hamilton Health Sciences

Hamilton Ontario

Canada

>

> Anyone from the Toronto area in this group?

> Our baby boy is 5.5 months old. When he was 3 months we notice some flatness

on the back of his head and we decided to put him to sleep on his sides rather

than on his back. But now his head is still flat on the back and on the right

side. We took pictures and see that it is getting worse.

>

> We have seen Dr. who dismissed our concern and said by the time he is 2 years

old it should heal on it's own but she really did not properly check him or look

at the progressionary pictures we took. We are going to see our family Dr.

Monday and are worried that she will also not be concerned. We are so scared

that we can't get a referal for treatent when we see it progressing worse over

the past 2 months. We are worried that if she does not see his flatness where

we can go to get the needed referal.

>

> Does anyone have any advise or had a similar circumstance?

>