Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
General health

Mumsnet doesn't verify the qualifications of users. If you have medical concerns, please consult a healthcare professional.

Original poster

Plagiocephaly - anyone know about this?

11 replies

3catstoo · 02/05/2006 13:30

Hi,
My 3rd child was diagnosed with plagiocephaly (flat backed head). My other 2 children have 'normal' rounded heads.
I would like another baby but DH is concerned that we could have another baby with this condition.
I think it was just a case of me not putting her on her tummy enough as she always cried when I did it. Along with sleeping on the back, which of course I could not change.
DH is of the opinion that we should quit whilst we are ahead. He thinks a 4th child could have even more wrong with it.
We both see this in different ways. Our daughter has a funny shaped head but that's all. In every other way she is fine. The fact that she walked late and bottom shuffled rather than crawled (unlike the other 2) and had physio to encourage her to move off her bottom (just lazziness in my opinion !)makes him think we have an abnormal child. Don't get me wrong, he loves her to bits, but still thinks she is slightly unusual.
I need some evidence to prove that another baby would not be born with plagio as it develops over time in the first few months. I hope I am right in saying that.

Any help would be most appreciated.
I'm sure DH will place another hurdle in the way of having number 4 but at least we can put this issue to rest.

OP posts:
Kelly1978 · 02/05/2006 13:44

It sounds like he is making excuses to me! I have four children, two have plagiocephaly. Personally I put it down to them spending too much time in car seats, as I had a twin travel system. With the head huggers in place, they were on the back on their heads for hours. One of mine has mostly grown out of it, his head looks rounded now. The other is still very flat at the back but it makes no difference to him. If I was to have a 5th child, I would make sure they didn't sleep on the back of their head all the time from the start, and I don't think the problem would have occured!

this article here, discusses some cuases and the fourth paragraph says there is a low risk of cranio problems recurring. \link{http://www.cafamily.org.uk/Direct/c78.html\HERE}

Kelly1978 · 02/05/2006 13:47

also found ...

Certain early signs can alert parents to developing plagiocephaly. These include a significant flattening at the back of the head, ear misalignment when looking down from the top of head, and facial asymmetry, such as one eye appearing a different size or shape from the other. Methods to lessen deformation of the infant skull include limiting the use of anything that puts a "deforming force" on the back of the head, such as "bouncy seats," swings and carriers. Babies who sleep on their backs as recommended should spend as much parent-supervised time as possible on their stomachs for play. Lastly, parents should be reassured that such malformations if they occur are not believed to be related to developmental or neurological problems in children. Pediatrics 2002;109:19-25.

myermay · 02/05/2006 13:49

This condition is not heriditary. It's caused by either tight neck muscles in neck, which causes baby to hold head to one side, therefore flattening that side or just by being in a car seat or lying down for too long.

My son has just finished wearing a cranial helmet as he had a severly dented head to one side. He wore it for 4 months and now has a much normal shaped head.

Have you googled it? there's loads of info on the net

myermay · 02/05/2006 13:51

Contact the London Orthotic consultancy, this is who we used. They provide babies with helmets and scan their heads to tell you the severity of plagio, also gives lots of info. HTH

Original poster
3catstoo · 02/05/2006 13:53

Thank you for that.
Yes he is making excuses !!! But he does seem to be bothered by this head thing. Even though she has no other effects, everything is in full working order (I must look up the PC way of saying things )it is just cosmetic. Other people don't really notice until you tell them.

So you have 2 children with it. Where their heads the usual shape when they were born and then just got flatter?
How old are yours now, if you don't mind me asking?
My daughter is 2 this week.

OP posts:
Original poster
3catstoo · 02/05/2006 13:55

Thanks to you to MM.

It seems to be quite common.
I guess you had to go privately for the helmet?
DD is too old for that.

OP posts:
Kelly1978 · 02/05/2006 14:24

my dts are 13mnths now. They seemed to be normal at birth as we didn't notice it until they were around 4 months. We looked at the helmets, etc. but as it is a purely cosmetic issue I didn't want to put my boys through that.

Does she have much hair yet? I've been told it shoudl get less noticeable as they get older, and get more hair. With a girl this should be even more the case.

Oh, and I guess the pc term is neurotypical. Wink Grin

Original poster
3catstoo · 02/05/2006 14:41

She has quite thick hair which grows quickly.
Without a fringe she looked strange but now she has a fringe it's fine. Her head just looks big because of the flattening and 'corners' at the top back. She has quite a small build so her head probably seems bigger because of that too.

To be honest it wasn't an issue for us until she went to the physio to help her to move. The physio spotted it straight away and wanted her seen by a paediatrician. The physio took a cast of her head and it was amazing to see.
The paediatrician told me to ignore any horror stories as my daughter was fine. She said her head may never be perfectly round but no head has a perfect shape!!!

It would be easier to disguise in a girl I guess.

I didn't like the thought of the helmets either. My mother in law suggested it but apart from it being too late I didn't want to cause any upset over it as it isn't like she has a square head.

OP posts:
Kelly1978 · 02/05/2006 14:51

We actually realised that dp also has a flat head, so he prob had the same thing but we never noticed until the dts had it. It's far more common than people realise - very few people have a totally symmetrical head. Smile I'm sure she'll look fine when she gets older, and hopefully your partner will worry less. my dp was a bit panicked at first, and was even thinking about the helmets until he realised that it wasn't such a bug deal.

oliveoil · 02/05/2006 14:54

\link{http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,8123-2154688,00.html\article from The Times on Saturday here, written by a MN as well}

Original poster
3catstoo · 02/05/2006 17:17

Thanks Oliveoil.
I read that this morning. Didn't realise it was written by a MN.

I think DH was worried because from what we can both remember, we didn't treat our 3 differently so why only 1 got it is strange. Although thinking back I'm not sure that the 1st 2 put up such a fight when it came to going on their tummies and DS did not go in a bouncy chair as he hated it. He was carried about all the time - first child luxury !
I think if I do get to have another baby I will invest in one of those wrap around slings and carry the baby with me.

OP posts:
New posts on this thread. Refresh page