![]() ![]() Some babies do not find wearing a helmet comfortable, especially as they get older, but pain is not an issue. Is This Condition Painful?ĭeformational Plagiocephaly does not cause any pain to the baby. Cervical spine x-rays are used in children with torticollis and/or neck tightness. Children with unusual syndromes may have underlying brain abnormalities that are best seen on MRI, magnetic resonance imaging, which is a non-invasive diagnostic technique that produces computerized images of soft tissue. Skull x-rays and computerized tomography are used to evaluate the presence of early fusion of the cranial sutures. There is a distinctive head shape associated with early closure of specific sutures which differs from the head shape of infants with positional molding. The patient history also includes inquiries about the infant’s sleeping position and the presence of neck tightness and/or torticollis, which is an abnormal, somewhat fixed twisting of the neck associated with muscle contractions.Ī physical examination, which focuses on ridging of the sutures, shape of the head and neck, and other possible deformities associated with syndromes, follows the patient history. Questions are asked about prematurity, birth trauma, and multiple births. The mother’s pregnancy and the presence of an abnormal fetal position are taken into consideration. How Is Abnormal Head Shape Diagnosed and Treated?ĭiagnosis begins with a patient history. Your baby’s head shape will continue to round out throughout infancy and toddlerhood. The most effective time to treat this condition is in the first year of life, as the cranial bones are malleable and will respond to supervised “tummy time” as well as neck stretches. Insufficient amount of tummy time: While the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that your baby sleeps on his/her back, it is essential that your baby initiates a significant amount of supervised “tummy time” early in infancy.ĭeformational Plagiocephaly (in infancy) can be treated without helmets or helmet therapy.Prolonged positioning in the infant carriers, bouncy seats, swings, and many other devices that enable your baby to remain in the supine (back) position for a length of time.Torticollis or Sternocleidomastoid Imbalance: Neck abnormalities that cause your baby’s neck to remain in a specific position due to a limited range of motion this often presents by tilting the head to one side.Prematurity: Cranial bones are initially softer and easily morphed when remaining in the same position for a length of time.In-Utero: Singletons or multiples that remain in the same position for a length of time.What Is Abnormal Head Shape?ĭeformational Plagiocephaly (abnormal head shape) is commonly seen for the following reasons: Pictured: 4 month old patient treated at the International Craniofacial institute for Deformational Plagiocephaly and Torticollis without a helmet. Moving Things Into a Healthy Bite Terms.Craniofacial Conditions, Cures, Symptoms and Surgeries Terms.Speech Development with a Cleft Lip/Palate.Feeding an Infant with a Cleft Lip/Palate.Regardless of the suture(s) involved, all children with confirmed craniosynostosis should be monitored for increased intracranial pressure and developmental problems. Most cases of posterior plagiocephaly are due to positional molding, which can usually be managed nonsurgically. ![]() Posterior plagiocephaly may be due to unilambdoid synostosis or positional molding, which have very different clinical and imaging features. The scaphocephalic head shape resulting from sagittal synostosis requires surgical intervention for correction. The dolichocephalic head shape of preterm infants is non-synostotic in origin and is managed nonsurgically. Although only severe forms of the disorder are corrected surgically, all cases should be monitored for evidence of developmental problems. Metopic synostosis presents as a wide spectrum of severity. Special emphasis has been placed on the problem of posterior plagiocephaly, in the light of recent evidence demonstrating that lambdoid synostosis has been overdiagnosed. This paper deals with three groups of abnormal head shape that may cause diagnostic confusion: the spectrum of metopic synostosis the dolichocephaly of prematurity versus sagittal synostosis and the differential diagnosis of plagiocephaly. Establishing the presence of craniosynostosis, which warrants surgical correction, versus non-synostotic causes of head deformity, which do not, is not always straightforward. The correct differential diagnosis of an abnormal head shape in an infant or a child is vital to the management of this common condition. ![]()
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