Re: Remember new and anxious? Casting done!

[Guest guest]

Congratulations on the casting. Regarding breastfeeding, I kept the

band on when I nursed my son. It was uncomfortable at first and took

some adjusting on both our parts but after you get used to it

everything is fine. I would think the 20 to 40 minutes out are for

the initial adjustment period. When my son got his band I was told

to do a spot check every 3 to 4 hours and leave the band off until

any red marks disappeared then to go the 23 hours after the initial

two days of adjustment. I think the time frame in the band depends

on the child's severity and it also depends on growth spurts and age

started. Good luck.

Candy, mom to (DOCbanded #1 - 10/5/01, #2 - 2/25/02)

> Hi, everyone, it's been maybe a few weeks since i've been on here,

> I'm from Columbia MO and my 6 mo. old son, Kai(pronounced

> like tie) has mild tort and mod-severe plagiocephaly. We went for

> our casting for a Starband last Tue. and it went really well, our

> orthotist used a fiberglass roll to cast, it was really quick and

> lots easier and neater than what I thought after seeing the trad.

> casting method on the net. He hasn't done too many posit. bands at

> this job, but apparently did before this. He does mostly

postsurgical

> bands that he himself makes. He says he has more success when he

> modifies the mold himself, instead of sending it to the company to

> modify when they make the helmet. He doesn't take measurements

before

> or during, he said he keeps the mold for a few months, but can't

keep

> it for the whole process. He goes mainly by looking, not

> measurements. Is this unusual, or worrisome? he seems reliable,

very

> easy to talk to and seems to be knowledgeable. He stated that Kai's

> head is in the upper 30% as far as severity goes, that's why I

called

> it mod-severe, or maybe that's severe. He said he would probably

have

> to wear the helmet about 6 mo. or more, I was disappointed as the

> time on the starband site says median of 3-5mo. or something, but

as

> I read thru the emails, I see it seems to really vary. He said it

> would be a little harder because Kai's head is kind of short to the

> peak of his head from the forehead, is that brachy? We have another

> week or so until we get the helmet, I'm wondering about the

looseness

> everyone talks about, guess I'll find out. By the way, if anyone

> breastfeeds, do you take the helmet off while doing so? Our

orthotist

> mentioned taking the helmet off every 4 hrs for 20-40 min. at least

> until the redness disappeared, I thought it was supposed to be on

for

> 23 hrs? Probably will have more questions in a short time, it

almost

> seems like this was all a nightmare, because we don't have the

helmet

> yet and life goes on as usual. We are doing the two exercises the

Dr.

> recommended for his tort and he's doing better with those. Well

I'll

> write soon, thanks for listening Kaneko

> Columbia MO (mom to Kai)

[Guest guest]

Oh good I am glad to read the answer to the breastfeeding question. I

too was wondering about wearing the band while breastfeeding.Glad to

hear everything went well after getting adjusted. Mya gets her band

on March 6th. I am very anxious to see how she does with it.

Christi

--- In Plagiocephaly@y..., " candaceanddavid " <Candaceanddavid@a...>

wrote:

> Congratulations on the casting. Regarding breastfeeding, I kept

the

> band on when I nursed my son. It was uncomfortable at first and

took

> some adjusting on both our parts but after you get used to it

> everything is fine. I would think the 20 to 40 minutes out are for

> the initial adjustment period. When my son got his band I was told

> to do a spot check every 3 to 4 hours and leave the band off until

> any red marks disappeared then to go the 23 hours after the initial

> two days of adjustment. I think the time frame in the band depends

> on the child's severity and it also depends on growth spurts and

age

> started. Good luck.

> Candy, mom to (DOCbanded #1 - 10/5/01, #2 - 2/25/02)

>

>

>

>

> --- In Plagiocephaly@y..., " kaneko1232002 " <kaneko1232002@y...>

wrote:

> > Hi, everyone, it's been maybe a few weeks since i've been on

here,

> > I'm from Columbia MO and my 6 mo. old son, Kai(pronounced

> > like tie) has mild tort and mod-severe plagiocephaly. We went

for

> > our casting for a Starband last Tue. and it went really well, our

> > orthotist used a fiberglass roll to cast, it was really quick and

> > lots easier and neater than what I thought after seeing the trad.

> > casting method on the net. He hasn't done too many posit. bands

at

> > this job, but apparently did before this. He does mostly

> postsurgical

> > bands that he himself makes. He says he has more success when he

> > modifies the mold himself, instead of sending it to the company

to

> > modify when they make the helmet. He doesn't take measurements

> before

> > or during, he said he keeps the mold for a few months, but can't

> keep

> > it for the whole process. He goes mainly by looking, not

> > measurements. Is this unusual, or worrisome? he seems reliable,

> very

> > easy to talk to and seems to be knowledgeable. He stated that

Kai's

> > head is in the upper 30% as far as severity goes, that's why I

> called

> > it mod-severe, or maybe that's severe. He said he would probably

> have

> > to wear the helmet about 6 mo. or more, I was disappointed as the

> > time on the starband site says median of 3-5mo. or something, but

> as

> > I read thru the emails, I see it seems to really vary. He said it

> > would be a little harder because Kai's head is kind of short to

the

> > peak of his head from the forehead, is that brachy? We have

another

> > week or so until we get the helmet, I'm wondering about the

> looseness

> > everyone talks about, guess I'll find out. By the way, if anyone

> > breastfeeds, do you take the helmet off while doing so? Our

> orthotist

> > mentioned taking the helmet off every 4 hrs for 20-40 min. at

least

> > until the redness disappeared, I thought it was supposed to be on

> for

> > 23 hrs? Probably will have more questions in a short time, it

> almost

> > seems like this was all a nightmare, because we don't have the

> helmet

> > yet and life goes on as usual. We are doing the two exercises the

> Dr.

> > recommended for his tort and he's doing better with those. Well

> I'll

> > write soon, thanks for listening Kaneko

> > Columbia MO (mom to Kai)

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

That's great that you have the casting behind you, that should be the

hardest part of all of this. That's neat that he used a fiberglass

roll, I don't remember ever hearing of that before. How did Kai do

during the casting process?

My ortho only took one set of measurements and that was at our

initial visit, right before he casted the twins. As far as I know, I

don't think he had the mold of their heads at all after we got the

bands on. He also did everything visually, which at first I was bit

concerned about but he did have many years of experience behind him

and he did do an excellent job. I had also emailed him a few months

back about the differences between some STARbands, and since

youmentioned that your ortho makes some modifications, I thought I

would share this info with you:

The Star Band is molded in Florida, however the star band personell

are very helpful in modifying their design to assist the orthotist in

fitting the helmet as well as possible. These modifications can not

change the design that has been approved by the FDA. They will alter

the color and the side of the opening. Once the orthotist receives

the helmet from Florida it may be finished or unfinished. We usually

receive them unfinished because there are usually several

modifications necessary. Thus the orthotist has the freedom to

increase the size of the opening on the top of the helmet, making

them all look different in appearance.

If the physician has specific requests in the manufacturing or

fitting of the helmet, he certainly has the authority to make them.

I'm not exactly sure if that clarifies it for you, but I thought it

might help you feel more comfortable with your ortho. (Now I will

get teased because everyone knows I had a HUGE crush on my ortho!)

Be sure to get extra snuggle time in with Kai's little noggin and let

us know when he gets fitted for his band!

Niki

Kaylie & Danny (STAR grads)

Phila., PA

> Hi, everyone, it's been maybe a few weeks since i've been on here,

> I'm from Columbia MO and my 6 mo. old son, Kai(pronounced

> like tie) has mild tort and mod-severe plagiocephaly. We went for

> our casting for a Starband last Tue. and it went really well, our

> orthotist used a fiberglass roll to cast, it was really quick and

> lots easier and neater than what I thought after seeing the trad.

> casting method on the net. He hasn't done too many posit. bands at

> this job, but apparently did before this. He does mostly

postsurgical

> bands that he himself makes. He says he has more success when he

> modifies the mold himself, instead of sending it to the company to

> modify when they make the helmet. He doesn't take measurements

before

> or during, he said he keeps the mold for a few months, but can't

keep

> it for the whole process. He goes mainly by looking, not

> measurements. Is this unusual, or worrisome? he seems reliable,

very

> easy to talk to and seems to be knowledgeable. He stated that Kai's

> head is in the upper 30% as far as severity goes, that's why I

called

> it mod-severe, or maybe that's severe. He said he would probably

have

> to wear the helmet about 6 mo. or more, I was disappointed as the

> time on the starband site says median of 3-5mo. or something, but

as

> I read thru the emails, I see it seems to really vary. He said it

> would be a little harder because Kai's head is kind of short to the

> peak of his head from the forehead, is that brachy? We have another

> week or so until we get the helmet, I'm wondering about the

looseness

> everyone talks about, guess I'll find out. By the way, if anyone

> breastfeeds, do you take the helmet off while doing so? Our

orthotist

> mentioned taking the helmet off every 4 hrs for 20-40 min. at least

> until the redness disappeared, I thought it was supposed to be on

for

> 23 hrs? Probably will have more questions in a short time, it

almost

> seems like this was all a nightmare, because we don't have the

helmet

> yet and life goes on as usual. We are doing the two exercises the

Dr.

> recommended for his tort and he's doing better with those. Well

I'll

> write soon, thanks for listening Kaneko

> Columbia MO (mom to Kai)

[Guest guest]

Hi :

I'm glad the casting is done & over with! That's the hard part - the

rest should be a piece of cake. Not all orthotists take measurments

of the child's head. Mine didn't either. Be sure you take pictures

of every angle of Kai's head to monitor changes that might occur,

probably bi-weekly or even weekly photos. Those will be a big part

in monitoring improvement!

The amount of time a child spends in their band definitely varies.

It depends on the severity, age, growth spurts of each child. They

do say avg treatment time is 4 mos..

Usually for the first several days, orthotists recommend putting the

band on for an hour, then leaving it off for an hour. Hr. on Hr.

off. This is to monitor the red spots. But usually after one week

in the band, they say it's ok to leave the band on for the full 23

hrs a day as long as there are not bad red spots (that don't go away

w/i one hour).

Be sure you let us know when Kai's band is in. Good luck!

Debbie Abby's mom DOCGrad

MI

> Hi, everyone, it's been maybe a few weeks since i've been on here,

> I'm from Columbia MO and my 6 mo. old son, Kai(pronounced

> like tie) has mild tort and mod-severe plagiocephaly. We went for

> our casting for a Starband last Tue. and it went really well, our

> orthotist used a fiberglass roll to cast, it was really quick and

> lots easier and neater than what I thought after seeing the trad.

> casting method on the net. He hasn't done too many posit. bands at

> this job, but apparently did before this. He does mostly

postsurgical

> bands that he himself makes. He says he has more success when he

> modifies the mold himself, instead of sending it to the company to

> modify when they make the helmet. He doesn't take measurements

before

> or during, he said he keeps the mold for a few months, but can't

keep

> it for the whole process. He goes mainly by looking, not

> measurements. Is this unusual, or worrisome? he seems reliable,

very

> easy to talk to and seems to be knowledgeable. He stated that Kai's

> head is in the upper 30% as far as severity goes, that's why I

called

> it mod-severe, or maybe that's severe. He said he would probably

have

> to wear the helmet about 6 mo. or more, I was disappointed as the

> time on the starband site says median of 3-5mo. or something, but

as

> I read thru the emails, I see it seems to really vary. He said it

> would be a little harder because Kai's head is kind of short to the

> peak of his head from the forehead, is that brachy? We have another

> week or so until we get the helmet, I'm wondering about the

looseness

> everyone talks about, guess I'll find out. By the way, if anyone

> breastfeeds, do you take the helmet off while doing so? Our

orthotist

> mentioned taking the helmet off every 4 hrs for 20-40 min. at least

> until the redness disappeared, I thought it was supposed to be on

for

> 23 hrs? Probably will have more questions in a short time, it

almost

> seems like this was all a nightmare, because we don't have the

helmet

> yet and life goes on as usual. We are doing the two exercises the

Dr.

> recommended for his tort and he's doing better with those. Well

I'll

> write soon, thanks for listening Kaneko

> Columbia MO (mom to Kai)

[Guest guest]

-

The Furby story really cracked me up! That is hillarious!!! Thanks for

sharing!

Marci (Mom to )

oklahoma

[Guest guest]

Hi, Niki, thanks for your reply, you clarified some confusion I was

having about the difference in looks of the starbands I've seen in

pics, I thought they would all have to look exactly the same. I'm

glad that other orthotists that have a good rep also do things

visually, that makes me feel better, you're right. Kai did fine

during the casting, it only took about 5 min. with that fiberglass

roll, he put that stockinette over his head, but since it was not

casting material he didn't have to go over his eyes, and he cut holes

for them too, that made me feel better at least! And no mess! He

cried but my husband was able to hold him in his lap and that was

nice. Our orthotist was so quick and so good at it, that alone made

me feel comfortable with him, and great with kids(you would hope as

many as he sees!) He could just look at Kai's head and see so much

more than we even could in a second! I have a funny story about the

casting actually we've all had a good laugh over it anyway-hope you

enjoy it! I had read the tips on how to make the casting go as

smoothly as poss. on the plagio website so I took a little electronic

Furby toy that is Kai's older brother Sage's-Kai loves it because it

seems to talk to him when he touches it, he just smiles and giggles.

So I thought, well ,maybe that will distract him. It so happens with

all the movement on the the way into the orthotist' office Furby woke

up from a long nap and was very talkative, he jabbered and jabbered

the whole time we were asking questions (we hadn't met our orthotist

yet) I finally stuck it under my coat and it still was annoying! It

didn't help Kai at all during the casting, he was mad and nothing

really would have distracted him, it just added to the noise,( at

least it was short.) When we got into the car after the appointment

Furby was stilll trying to have a conversation and noone was

listening. I was trying to talk with my husband about how it all

went, and irritated , stuffed it into the glovebox trying to mute it,

as I was shutting the door it said, " Furby no like!! " and finally

shut up! We haven't heard from it since! It was a great laugh to

break the tension of this whole thing anyway, and another story to

tell Kai when he gets older! Anyhow, thanks for your reply!Appreciate

you all and have already referred a couple people to the website!

(mom to Kai-Columbia MO)

> Hi ,

> That's great that you have the casting behind you, that should be

the

> hardest part of all of this. That's neat that he used a

fiberglass

> roll, I don't remember ever hearing of that before. How did Kai do

> during the casting process?

>

> My ortho only took one set of measurements and that was at our

> initial visit, right before he casted the twins. As far as I know,

I

> don't think he had the mold of their heads at all after we got the

> bands on. He also did everything visually, which at first I was

bit

> concerned about but he did have many years of experience behind him

> and he did do an excellent job. I had also emailed him a few

months

> back about the differences between some STARbands, and since

> youmentioned that your ortho makes some modifications, I thought I

> would share this info with you:

>

> The Star Band is molded in Florida, however the star band personell

> are very helpful in modifying their design to assist the orthotist

in

> fitting the helmet as well as possible. These modifications can not

> change the design that has been approved by the FDA. They will

alter

> the color and the side of the opening. Once the orthotist receives

> the helmet from Florida it may be finished or unfinished. We

usually

> receive them unfinished because there are usually several

> modifications necessary. Thus the orthotist has the freedom to

> increase the size of the opening on the top of the helmet, making

> them all look different in appearance.

>

> If the physician has specific requests in the manufacturing or

> fitting of the helmet, he certainly has the authority to make them.

>

>

> I'm not exactly sure if that clarifies it for you, but I thought it

> might help you feel more comfortable with your ortho. (Now I will

> get teased because everyone knows I had a HUGE crush on my ortho!)

>

> Be sure to get extra snuggle time in with Kai's little noggin and

let

> us know when he gets fitted for his band!

>

> Niki

> Kaylie & Danny (STAR grads)

> Phila., PA

>

>

> --- In Plagiocephaly@y..., " kaneko1232002 " <kaneko1232002@y...>

wrote:

> > Hi, everyone, it's been maybe a few weeks since i've been on

here,

> > I'm from Columbia MO and my 6 mo. old son, Kai(pronounced

> > like tie) has mild tort and mod-severe plagiocephaly. We went

for

> > our casting for a Starband last Tue. and it went really well, our

> > orthotist used a fiberglass roll to cast, it was really quick and

> > lots easier and neater than what I thought after seeing the trad.

> > casting method on the net. He hasn't done too many posit. bands

at

> > this job, but apparently did before this. He does mostly

> postsurgical

> > bands that he himself makes. He says he has more success when he

> > modifies the mold himself, instead of sending it to the company

to

> > modify when they make the helmet. He doesn't take measurements

> before

> > or during, he said he keeps the mold for a few months, but can't

> keep

> > it for the whole process. He goes mainly by looking, not

> > measurements. Is this unusual, or worrisome? he seems reliable,

> very

> > easy to talk to and seems to be knowledgeable. He stated that

Kai's

> > head is in the upper 30% as far as severity goes, that's why I

> called

> > it mod-severe, or maybe that's severe. He said he would probably

> have

> > to wear the helmet about 6 mo. or more, I was disappointed as the

> > time on the starband site says median of 3-5mo. or something, but

> as

> > I read thru the emails, I see it seems to really vary. He said it

> > would be a little harder because Kai's head is kind of short to

the

> > peak of his head from the forehead, is that brachy? We have

another

> > week or so until we get the helmet, I'm wondering about the

> looseness

> > everyone talks about, guess I'll find out. By the way, if anyone

> > breastfeeds, do you take the helmet off while doing so? Our

> orthotist

> > mentioned taking the helmet off every 4 hrs for 20-40 min. at

least

> > until the redness disappeared, I thought it was supposed to be on

> for

> > 23 hrs? Probably will have more questions in a short time, it

> almost

> > seems like this was all a nightmare, because we don't have the

> helmet

> > yet and life goes on as usual. We are doing the two exercises the

> Dr.

> > recommended for his tort and he's doing better with those. Well

> I'll

> > write soon, thanks for listening Kaneko

> > Columbia MO (mom to Kai)

[Guest guest]

so glad the casting is done and Kai did so well. I have to laugh at

the Furby story we have one of those in our house but it did not last

long- (who is 14 months) was mad at it for interrupting his tape I think

so he threw it on the floor every time it spoke it went from speaking English

to some weird alien language and then finally broke-no more furby! Although I

like your story better. Keep us posted and good luck!

Beck

[Guest guest]

Hi

Ok, let me try this again, I already replied to yoru email at 9 am,

which was like 9 hrs ago, so evidentally it's been lost in land

(ugg!). Of course it was a longer reply that I sent! I see you've

gotten some good responses already from others.

When my daughter had her STARband they never took any measurements of

her. I suggest taking at least bi-weekly photos of Kai to be sure

you're seeing improvements. It is so hard to remember what their

head looked like even one wk ago in the band. The photos will be of

good source to you over the next few mos to monitor his head.

As for the time off with the band, most orthotists suggest one hour

on on hour off during the first few days to a week - after that they

say 23 hrs on straight one hour off (as long as there aren't any red

spots).

The time a child spends in a band does vary. It depends on severity,

age, growth spurts. Kai could be done in 4 mos., but he could be

done in 6, it's so hard to predict.

I hope this post shows up! Now my other reply will probably re-

appear from the ghosts of land & contradict everything I said

earlier hehe.

I'm glad the casting is done & it went smooth. Let us know when it's

in.

Debbie Abby's mom DOCGrad

MI

> Hi, everyone, it's been maybe a few weeks since i've been on here,

> I'm from Columbia MO and my 6 mo. old son, Kai(pronounced

> like tie) has mild tort and mod-severe plagiocephaly. We went for

> our casting for a Starband last Tue. and it went really well, our

> orthotist used a fiberglass roll to cast, it was really quick and

> lots easier and neater than what I thought after seeing the trad.

> casting method on the net. He hasn't done too many posit. bands at

> this job, but apparently did before this. He does mostly

postsurgical

> bands that he himself makes. He says he has more success when he

> modifies the mold himself, instead of sending it to the company to

> modify when they make the helmet. He doesn't take measurements

before

> or during, he said he keeps the mold for a few months, but can't

keep

> it for the whole process. He goes mainly by looking, not

> measurements. Is this unusual, or worrisome? he seems reliable,

very

> easy to talk to and seems to be knowledgeable. He stated that Kai's

> head is in the upper 30% as far as severity goes, that's why I

called

> it mod-severe, or maybe that's severe. He said he would probably

have

> to wear the helmet about 6 mo. or more, I was disappointed as the

> time on the starband site says median of 3-5mo. or something, but

as

> I read thru the emails, I see it seems to really vary. He said it

> would be a little harder because Kai's head is kind of short to the

> peak of his head from the forehead, is that brachy? We have another

> week or so until we get the helmet, I'm wondering about the

looseness

> everyone talks about, guess I'll find out. By the way, if anyone

> breastfeeds, do you take the helmet off while doing so? Our

orthotist

> mentioned taking the helmet off every 4 hrs for 20-40 min. at least

> until the redness disappeared, I thought it was supposed to be on

for

> 23 hrs? Probably will have more questions in a short time, it

almost

> seems like this was all a nightmare, because we don't have the

helmet

> yet and life goes on as usual. We are doing the two exercises the

Dr.

> recommended for his tort and he's doing better with those. Well

I'll

> write soon, thanks for listening Kaneko

> Columbia MO (mom to Kai)

[Guest guest]

I hope this post shows up! Now my other reply will probably re-

appear from the ghosts of land & contradict everything I said

earlier hehe.

Sure enough my first post finally showed up like 11 hours after I

sent it! Hehehe - silly . I'm glad my 2 responses were

pretty much identical though!

Debbie Abby's mom

MI

[Guest guest]

Oh , that Furby story was great!!!! I got a great laugh out

of that one!!

Niki

Kaylie & Danny (STAR grads)

Phila., PA

> > > Hi, everyone, it's been maybe a few weeks since i've been on

> here,

> > > I'm from Columbia MO and my 6 mo. old son, Kai

(pronounced

> > > like tie) has mild tort and mod-severe plagiocephaly. We went

> for

> > > our casting for a Starband last Tue. and it went really well,

our

> > > orthotist used a fiberglass roll to cast, it was really quick

and

> > > lots easier and neater than what I thought after seeing the

trad.

> > > casting method on the net. He hasn't done too many posit. bands

> at

> > > this job, but apparently did before this. He does mostly

> > postsurgical

> > > bands that he himself makes. He says he has more success when

he

> > > modifies the mold himself, instead of sending it to the company

> to

> > > modify when they make the helmet. He doesn't take measurements

> > before

> > > or during, he said he keeps the mold for a few months, but

can't

> > keep

> > > it for the whole process. He goes mainly by looking, not

> > > measurements. Is this unusual, or worrisome? he seems reliable,

> > very

> > > easy to talk to and seems to be knowledgeable. He stated that

> Kai's

> > > head is in the upper 30% as far as severity goes, that's why I

> > called

> > > it mod-severe, or maybe that's severe. He said he would

probably

> > have

> > > to wear the helmet about 6 mo. or more, I was disappointed as

the

> > > time on the starband site says median of 3-5mo. or something,

but

> > as

> > > I read thru the emails, I see it seems to really vary. He said

it

> > > would be a little harder because Kai's head is kind of short to

> the

> > > peak of his head from the forehead, is that brachy? We have

> another

> > > week or so until we get the helmet, I'm wondering about the

> > looseness

> > > everyone talks about, guess I'll find out. By the way, if

anyone

> > > breastfeeds, do you take the helmet off while doing so? Our

> > orthotist

> > > mentioned taking the helmet off every 4 hrs for 20-40 min. at

> least

> > > until the redness disappeared, I thought it was supposed to be

on

> > for

> > > 23 hrs? Probably will have more questions in a short time, it

> > almost

> > > seems like this was all a nightmare, because we don't have the

> > helmet

> > > yet and life goes on as usual. We are doing the two exercises

the

> > Dr.

> > > recommended for his tort and he's doing better with those. Well

> > I'll

> > > write soon, thanks for listening Kaneko

> > > Columbia MO (mom to Kai)