Hip dysplasia

[Queenie6655]

Hello all

Posting for traffic as I tried some of the development threads and didn't find much

So my health visitor was here earlier

She said my dd has long leg longer than the other

She said there may be a strong chance she will need to wear a brace for months

Feel so upset by this
The paediatrician checked her over for an hour when she was two days old and she said all looked perfectly fine 😲😢😢😢😢😢😢😢

Hi Op!

I am the mother of a little girl who is now 10 months, who was diagnosed with Hip Dysplasia at 2 months and started wearing a pavlik harness.

I was really distraught at first because Hip Dysplasia has been a huge negative thing in my life (it was caught late and I've had to have hip replacements/ still get a lot of aches and pains). So at the time it felt like this huge looming BAD thing.

Now I forget she ever had it! The treatment when it's caught under a year is the most nothing, simplest thing. We had seven weeks total in the harness, and the scans show her as cured. We have one last scan to make sure at a year and a half old and then we are discharged.

Practicalities- like others have said it's well worth investing in the specialist clothes from M&S than trying to fit normal clothes around the harness. Car seat wise you can hire a car seat specially made to use with the harness from maxi-cosi www.maxi-cosi.co.uk/c/happy-hips-service and this was well worth it.

She was a little grumpy for a day or two after the harness went on. I was sad because she didn't feel as easy to snuggle and it made her body feel hard. I also took a while to re-work out the best ways to feed her.

It's well worth having someone else/ partner in the appointments with you as I was more nervous than my partner about handling her and not making things worse. Although they kept reassuring me I wasn't going to do any harm if I lifted her legs up etc I kept thinking I was going to break her somehow. He was confident so I let him do them first and build up my confidence with her.

We had a slight problem with her skin rubbing under one of the shoulder straps so keep an eye out for that - we used some medical dressing padding to stop it hurting her.

After four weeks we could take the harness off for some bath times and playtime. The time just went really fast. And then at the seven week appointment it was- yep all good, she doesn't need to wear this anymore. Goodbye and we'll see you in three months for a check up x-ray. The xray appointment the man scanning said everything looked totally normal and as it should be and if it wasn't written on her notes she'd had hip dysplasia he'd never have known!

If you have any questions please do let me know as I have gone through it all very recently. In hindsight I actually think it was one of the most minor things they could have told me my baby had, I mean how many things could your baby be diagnosed with that could be treated in a non-invasive, painless, and completely cured way in just seven weeks? :)

Re the scan no need to pay for private at all. From memory I think as long as the harness goes on before six months the really successful treatment odds are the same, and they are still very good up to a year. The NHS got us in about two weeks after the referral for ours, our treatment started at two months.

Oh and we just used her regular disposable nappies with the harness. You change them as normal and just thread the taps through under the straps. And pray it doesn't have a blow out (although they did give us a spare harness just in case of a poonami!)

I wouldn't pay no. I think I'd chase when she was 4/5 weeks if you haven't heard anything so she's fitted in at 6 weeks or before. Agree with pp that it will get expensive as there's regular scans at first then X-rays.
Our experience was in recent years (still have an X-ray left) and the NHS seemed really on it in terms of quick treatment etc.

Angels thank you all

This has helped me hugely xxxxxxxx

My child had this as well. I was really upset and cried a lot so I understand. But as others have said it really is lucky if it’s caught early as the treatment when they’re tiny is much easier than later on. Pavlic harness for 12 weeks for us (hip was completely dislocated though) and it did the trick! This was before M&S had the clothing range so I did struggle a bit with clothes but other than that we got used to it pretty quickly. I second the recommendation of getting a good sling! Once the harness was off we were advised not to use a walker / door bouncer etc as they can place a bit of strain on the hips. Good luck, the scan may be clear but if it’s not then things will be ok and yes you should get an NHS one in the next few weeks, don’t pay private as it’s a long process of follow up appointments if there is a problem and the nhs deal with it well.

@Hadenough21

Many thanks so helpful

Hey OP, just reiterating what everyone else has said, don't worry!

DD was diagnosed at 10 months with hip dysplasia of her left hip. The doctor we saw said it was probable that her hip had been dislocated at birth so did not 'click' when they tested it which is why it was not picked up in the newborn tests.

She was referred to consultant team at Gt Ormond St under Miss Eastwood. If you are near London I highly recommend her.

We managed to get a cancellation appt for a closed reduction operation just 6 weeks later. DD was in a spica cast for a total of 3 months (had to be changed after 6 weeks because she grew so much!) and then a brace for 23 hours a day for another 8 weeks.

It was scary having our 11 month old going under general anaesthetic, but Miss Eastwood was amazing and very reassuring. One of the things she said to us was that although she understood as parents the operation was scary for us, for her it was actually very dull and ordinary as she had done so many. She is a real expert in the field.

The hardest thing about it all was keeping the cast clean.

DD is now 15 and doesn't remember a thing about the operation or cast - we did keep a diary and took lots of photos which she loves looking at - doing that gave me something to focus on at the time which helped me deal with it all. She then had annual check ups until she was about 8, followed by check ups every 2 years since then. Next check up is in March, and we expect it to be the last one.

She has been warned she will have to have a hip replacement earlier than most, maybe in her 30s, and she can't do the splits, but other than that you would never know!

Hope that is reassuring, but let me know if you want further details!

I can't notice the difference in leg length !!??

Maybe that is just me wishing it all ok

Do you think it caused pain?

OP sorry I haven’t had a chance to read all the replies but I see you asked about double nappy. Sorry if someone has already replied.

We were told to double nappy between scans as DC was borderline.
We were told to put a nappy on as normal, then roll up a muslin or similar which was then placed between the legs (slightly more toward the front) then another nappy over the top to hold the muslin in place (I found it easier to put the second nappy on backwards)
I don’t know if this makes a real difference but as I say DC hips were borderline and in the end did not need a harness.

It won’t be painful OP, babies are very bendy at this stage!

Have a look on the gov.uk website at the Newborn and Infant Examination (also called NIPE). Babies have their hips examined within 72 hours of birth and they should be examined again by the gp at the 6-8 week check. If there’s any concerns they refer for hip scan with the aim to get baby scanned and in a harness if necessary by 6 weeks if it’s picked up at the initial check.

The optimum time for scan is around 4 -5 weeks as often when babies are newborn their hip joints are immature and by this point they have sorted themselves out a bit- they found that by scanning the ‘worst’ ones within 2 weeks they were over treating babies that didn’t really need it. So no need to rush for a private scan. 4-5 weeks is a good time to chase if you haven’t heard. X

She shouldn’t need a private hip scan. She is actually too young just yet, the optimal age is 4-6 weeks. The referral (I presume to paediatric orthopaedics) should come through fairly quickly and they will order the scan if indicated.

Even if she needs the Pavlik harness, the outcomes are generally excellent

@Queenie6655 I couldn’t visually see a problem either, so I was completely shocked when they diagnosed it. It’s not really obvious which is why some children end up being diagnosed so late. The only real way to tell is to go for the scan when you get the appointment and see what they say.

First off, don't panic. It is really common. My daughter was in a pavlik harness for 24 weeks in total and so far it has cured it completely.

The scan will show straight away and they may put your baby in harness straight away or tell you to come back another day. Take some spare clothes in a larger size or a dress with you to the appointment, as we had no idea and our daughter came out naked but wrapped in blankets in February as the clothes she had on wouldn't fit over the harness!

If caught early on it is really treatable, 94% of cases are cured with harness.

My GP couldn't even visually tell the Hip Dysplasia was there on our little one after knowing the diagnosis (this was the 8 week baby check before the harness went on and includes a specific Hip Dysplasia comparison) so it can be very subtle if its there.

Don't worry there won't be any pain for your DD if it is, I had it in both hips and with one fully dislocated until I was three years old. I was walking and running on my dodgy hips without a care in the world, I just ran kind of funny! The pains I get now are from having less of a hip socket than I should and the cartilage wearing away much earlier than usual. But that only happens because it was caught so late with me.

I have a very similar story to @Barleysugar85 except I was 4 when my dislocated hip was diagnosed. I was never in pain before diagnosis so don't worry. I have problems with my hips now but they is the result of it not being treated early enough and my hip sockets are very worn out (I am 40 but have the hips of an 80 year old ).
My DD also had hip dysplasia at birth in both hips (1 was picked up at her newborn check, the other was only noticed on the scan at 3 weeks). The Pavlik harness was fitted at 3 weeks and doesn't hurt the baby at all. It's very soft and flexible and baby fits fine in the car seat, pram etc. and I could still baby-wear her in a sling and breastfeed her without problems.
The only issue is clothing - babygros and trousers were awkward so she mainly wore dresses and nighties (you can get 'baby gowns' for very young babies). As she was a winter baby, I bought her some leg warmers to keep her little legs warm.
She was in the harness 24/7 for 6 weeks and then overnight for another 6 weeks and has had no further problems.

I know this isn’t much reassurance but I had hip dysplasia that was picked up very late. I wore a hip brace for a few months as a toddler and had delayed walking. I was born in the 80s.

But since then, I’ve always lead a very active life and run marathons. (Despite needing steroid injections in my hip joint itself twice and sometimes periods of hydrotherapy)

I know you’re upset OP but try not to be too worried.

The thought of anything being wrong with your newborn is terrifying, but they are just checking out a possibility. Hip dysplasia is very easily missed with the "click" test paediatricians do.
They scan routinely in many countries.

The ultrasound is painless, I'd recommend bringing a dummy as it helps baby to relax their legs.

Both of my children had severe hip dysplasia and spent their first few months in the pavlik harness. After a short few days of getting used to it you just carry on as before. Both now have no problems with their hips.

I was diagnosed with hip dysplasia in my 40s. I had excruciating pain in my hip and I had arthritis caused by it, but weirdly my arthritis has "mended" it ,still painful but that's because all my tendons, muscles and ligaments don't fit my new hip shape. Before then I used to get feelings where my hip would feel like it would slide out of place and then go back again.

I think it would be less impactful, if she does have it, than go without it being treated until she's way in to adulthood.

I agree with all pps, you’re actually really lucky it’s been picked up now as early identification means it can be fixed. Dd1 was picked up immediately after birth as one hip completely dislocated on movement. Pavlik harness for 7 weeks (ish can’t remember properly) and now, at 26, no problems.

It may seem the end of the world now but it really is a fairly minor issue once identified.

I suspect the advice is different now, but we were allowed to bath while in the harness and drying was a pita. What I didn’t realise though, until I had dd2, is that it really makes a newborn a lot easier to hold in the bath 😁

No need to go private but try to chase the NHS scan. Finding and treating this early is super effective.

STEPS charity has lots of fantastic advice and a Facebook support page if you need it. The hospital should give you leaflets with some more information.

Both my children had DDH and both had very successful treatment. I still remember the tears and anxiousness when my son was diagnosed many years ago.

Now both children run and jump and play with the friends and noone would realize what they went through as infants. Neither remember it and both coped amazingly.

YOU will cope too. And in years to come you'll look back and wonder why you worried so much. Please feel free to PM if you have any specific questions or if I can help in any way at all!

You guys are the absolute BEST

Thank you and sorry for any silly questions

So so reassuring

Scared but really reassured by all these wonderful posts xxxxxxxxxxxx

Our DD had hip dysplasia and was put in a harness at 8 weeks. It felt like the end of the world at the time but it was harder for us than it was for her. She didn’t know any different and seemed completely unbothered by it. Nappy changes were actually easier as she couldn’t wriggle away and I found some hip dysplasia clothing in Marks and Spencer’s. She was in harness for 12 weeks. We had a checkup recently and the doctor said that looking at the X-ray, he’d never know those were not ‘normal’ hips. The harness is VERY effective and the NHS were absolutely brilliant.

@spottedbadger

Our DD had hip dysplasia and was put in a harness at 8 weeks. It felt like the end of the world at the time but it was harder for us than it was for her. She didn’t know any different and seemed completely unbothered by it. Nappy changes were actually easier as she couldn’t wriggle away and I found some hip dysplasia clothing in Marks and Spencer’s. She was in harness for 12 weeks. We had a checkup recently and the doctor said that looking at the X-ray, he’d never know those were not ‘normal’ hips. The harness is VERY effective and the NHS were absolutely brilliant.

Thank you so much

And thanks all what a wonderful community we have on here

So so helpful xxxxxx

I would pop her in cloth nappies asap if she isn't already - they're a bit bulkier but hold the hip in a better place, my friend was advised this by her GP for her girl, and when they saw her at the referral they were pleased to see them.