Question about helmets and head shape...

I have twin boys who are almost 4 months old. Christian's head appears to be getting flat in the back and is an entirely different shape than his brothers. At his 2 month check up the doctor said that it looked fine because I was a bit concerned then but now I think it is more pronounced. We will be going back in the beginning of January and I will ask then. I wanted to know for those of you who had babies in helmets, when did you notice and how pronounced was it before they decided on the helmets? My hubby doesn't really think it is bad and everyone I ask says that they think he just has a different head shape than his brother. I don't know if I am being paranoid but it appears to have gotten worse over the past few months. If there is a problem is there any going back now or will need to use a helmet to correct it? Any info or stories would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

We noticed Mallory's flat spot when she was 2 months old. We tried to correct it by adding more tummy time but it didn't work. I posted pictures of her head shape in another link. You can see how pronounced it was. I think it was pretty bad. There was even an indention in the back of her head where the bones were growing incorrectly. I would think that at 4 months, it's not going to change much for the better without correction. But I'm pretty paranoid about that or at least I was. We took Mallory for her consultation at 5 months but scheduled it right after her 4 month check-up (just couldn't find a mutual time to go in with DH until she was 5 months). By the time she was almost 6 months she was wearing her helmet. She wore it exactly 8 weeks. Remember that the earlier they get the helmet on, the earlier it will come off. Babies head are more maleable at the younger ages. And IMO, I wouldn't even consider NOT fixing a boy's flat spot. Girls will have hair that will cover their flat spots. It is much more visible on boys and I see far too many boys out there with flat spots. I'd hate to have my kid mad at me for something that could have easily been fixed when younger. If your doctor is concerned, I would take Christian for a consultation. It's free so you have nothing to lose. My pediatrician wasn't concerned with Mallory's head shape at all and if you look at the pictures I posted, I can't see why she wouldn't be concerned about it. Maybe because she is a girl? Let me know if you have any specific questions. Sorry for the novel.

 

DD has a flat spot on the right side of her head, because from birth she tended to always look right. We mentioned it to the pediatrician and he said that it will get better on its own by age 2... He thinks helmets are a waste of money. So, we didn't go for it. To be honest nobody seems to notice it anyway, and 5 months later it's already much better. Personally I wouldn't bother unless it's a very noticeable deformity (like, the back of the head won't be really noticeable once they have longer hair for example). I've seen some babies who really had huge flat spots, and I totally see how I would have got a helmet for those though.

 

Joel had (has) torticollis, so he would only turn his head in one direction as a newborn, and he developed plagiocephaly, a flat spot on the side of his head. He had pronounced plagio and facial asymmetry, and was deemed a "severe" case. Now his head is absolutely perfect and he's handsome as can be. Our insurance paid for it.

Frankly, I wouldn't trust a pediatrician who said that helmets are a waste. Unless he's a neurologist, it's not his area of expertise, and it can have a significant impact on the child's health, including the growth of the child's brain.

 

QUOTE(ladybenz @ Dec 24 2008, 10:51 AM) [snapback]1121372[/snapback]
Frankly, I wouldn't trust a pediatrician who said that helmets are a waste. Unless he's a neurologist, it's not his area of expertise, and it can have a significant impact on the child's health, including the growth of the child's brain.


I totally agree. This isn't an area of speciality for pediatricians, nor should it be.

And Samantha had torticollis and was in physical therapy for 2 months to correct it. She did have a very minor flat spot. We took her for a consultation and the specialist said it wasn't something he thought we needed to fix. He said he wouldn't fix it on his own child (and his own child wore a doc band). So we only ended up with one band, saving $3300. I wish my insurance would have covered Mallory's band!

 

I wouldn't trust a specialist more than a pediatrician though... Don't forget that they are in it for the money in the end, so obviously according to them most babies would need a helmet/head band... Honestly I've never ever met a child or adult that had a head shape that caught my attention... so I tend to believe that it gets fixed on its own also, for minor cases. If it's really obvious though, obviously a helmet can really help. But again, if you can afford it, and don't want to wait it out, helmets are fine also. I just can't help feeling guilty I didn't get it for DD even though we could not afford it anyway I guess... but it's getting better on its own already so I'll come back to you in 2 years about the topic, lol.

 

Would you please describe where the flat spot(s) are. Our twins have different shaped heads and they both sleep on their backs. Also, is it normal for the top of one of their heads to be flat? The other twin's isn't. I know that their ped will tell me that they are fine, so I wanted to check with other Moms.

 

Obie- Check out this website. www.cranialtech.com It is the company we used for Mallory's helmet and it describes the different kinds of flatnesses. Plagiocecphaly refers to a flat spot on the side of the head. Brachycephaly is the back of the head, where they would lay down. They are some pictures of clients on there that are good references. Some are severe and some are less severe.

 

Thank you. I looked at the Web site and several others and am still not sure if I should do anything about my son, as he is only 5 weeks old.

Would you please look at my son's photos and tell me if you think that his head is flat. My email address is obie9*AT*optonline*DOT*net - please send me you email address so I can send you his photos.

 

I started to notice my boys' head shape at 8 weeks or. By 4 months it was obvious to me. I took a long time to get my pedi to agree that something was off. They went to the orthothics specialist at Sick Kids at 7 months and were in helmets by 8 months. We finished with the helmets at a year old. They both still have less than perfect head shape, but their hair covers it.