Guest guest Posted December 12, 2002 Report Share Posted December 12, 2002 Hi, Welcome to the group! My son was dx with torticollis at his 2 month check-up, so I know just how scared and anxious you are to find this out about your 3 month old. The good news is that tort is very treatable, and the fact that your child is mild is even better. My son had severe left tort, and we were able to reach resolve- so I know you can too! I also work FT and was scared that we wouldn't be able to get in all those stretches. We went to formal pt 2x a week, and stretched and massaged our son daily- usually at night when I got home from work- although we did alert our daycare and showed someone a few stretches that we felt comfortable with. I will attach the stretches that I printed out for them, and it shows a great carrying hold that seperates that neck and shoulder without much fuss. Everything that you can do will help, prop the head midline in carseats, limit time spent on the back of the head now, this will help decrease the chance for plagio to worsen, put all items of interest on the tort side to encourage rotation in that direction. I had to push my ped for direction on plagio, they never mentioned the possibility of plagio from tort, nor did they spot it at birth. And they felt that all of those things you mentioned, puffier cheek, bossing, even ear misalingment and smaller eye were all minor and not to worry. Be persistent, take pictures now with wet hair. If you feel that by 4 months old things have not progressively gotten better, start looking into the helmet/DOC band option- the earlier you start treatment, the better the results- and it can take time to get appts., etc. My Doc tried to convince me that no one is perfect, but thanks to this Board, I already gained some insight to people that were further down the road than myself, wishing that they had not listened to the advice of their Doc. My ped went with our decision and gave us the rx for the band. He was in it from approx. 5-8 months with a guess of 95% correction. The ped now thinks it was the best thing we ever did! So, you are ahead of the game too, educate yourself to the limit and become your child's best health care advocate ready and willing to determine for yourself the best course of action. Repositioning has proven effective for some, but does not always work for others (our situation). I would highly recommend joining the tort board at www.torticolliskids , its great to talk with other parents going through the same things as yourself- they were a great help to me. Good luck and if I can help you in anyway, please email me. Been there, ' Mom Tort Stretches/ Hold Tort Info Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 12, 2002 Report Share Posted December 12, 2002 Thanks - I would love that info. Also the info for CT if you have a number. I am also from LI, originally. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 12, 2002 Report Share Posted December 12, 2002 Hi everyone. My three month old son was diagnosed with torticollis (mild) but no one ever mentioned plagio, not the pediatrician, pediatric opthamologist or pediatric orthopedic surgeon. I can see it, though, and learned about it through websites. My son has flat spots, bossing on the forhead on the side of the flat spots, a fatter check on one side, etc. Also, because of the tort he likes to turn to the left while sleeping, and sucks that thumb only. I am very nervous and upset that none of the docs told me about this! I am going on my own, and am not sure of the right treatment. Does anyone know a great doc, physical therapist, or nanny (I'm going back to work and need someone to be a great stretcher while I'm gone) in the NYC area? Any other advice? Thank you so much. I really appreciate the support. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 12, 2002 Report Share Posted December 12, 2002 Hello! You can check out some repositioning techniques at http://www.plagiocephaly.org/support/repotech.htm My son had torticollis too and it make repositioning so difficult because the neck wants to fall to the preferred position. You may want to check out Cranial technologies in Paramus, NJ. You can get a free evaluation there. And they will be honest. Welcome to the group and good luck on your nanny search! Dane's mom DOC Grad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 12, 2002 Report Share Posted December 12, 2002 Hello and welcome. I see that Debbie, and have already replied and I would just simply second what they have already said. Your son being just 3 months old definitely has time on his side and that is the good news. Correcting the tort will be crucial in correcting the plagio if you are using repositioning. Repo is very hard with tort babies. I agree that a trip to the CT office would be a good idea. They might also be able to help you find a plagio knowldegable specialist to help with the RX. Best wishes and keep us posted! Marci (Mom to ) Oklahoma > Hi everyone. My three month old son was diagnosed with torticollis > (mild) but no one ever mentioned plagio, not the pediatrician, > pediatric opthamologist or pediatric orthopedic surgeon. I can see > it, though, and learned about it through websites. My son has flat > spots, bossing on the forhead on the side of the flat spots, a fatter > check on one side, etc. Also, because of the tort he likes to turn > to the left while sleeping, and sucks that thumb only. I am very > nervous and upset that none of the docs told me about this! I am > going on my own, and am not sure of the right treatment. Does anyone > know a great doc, physical therapist, or nanny (I'm going back to > work and need someone to be a great stretcher while I'm gone) in the > NYC area? Any other advice? Thank you so much. I really > appreciate the support. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 12, 2002 Report Share Posted December 12, 2002 Hi, Welcome to the group! Your son will only benefit from repositioning. I know who hard that can be with a baby w/torticollis. Here is a great site all about repositioning: http://www.geocities.com/alittleone2000/plagiopage.htm I know of a pediatric neurosurgeon in Manhattan. He believes in banding. He doesn't use Cranial Tech though. He uses Hanger Orthotics in Manhattan. Let me know if you want his info. I'm on Long Island. But I go to Cranial Tech in NJ. > Hi everyone. My three month old son was diagnosed with torticollis > (mild) but no one ever mentioned plagio, not the pediatrician, > pediatric opthamologist or pediatric orthopedic surgeon. I can see > it, though, and learned about it through websites. My son has flat > spots, bossing on the forhead on the side of the flat spots, a fatter > check on one side, etc. Also, because of the tort he likes to turn > to the left while sleeping, and sucks that thumb only. I am very > nervous and upset that none of the docs told me about this! I am > going on my own, and am not sure of the right treatment. Does anyone > know a great doc, physical therapist, or nanny (I'm going back to > work and need someone to be a great stretcher while I'm gone) in the > NYC area? Any other advice? Thank you so much. I really > appreciate the support. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 12, 2002 Report Share Posted December 12, 2002 Hello, So far everyone has given you excellent input. You have a diagnosis at such a young age so odds are definitely in your son's favor. My daughter, , was diagnosed with tort and severe plagiocephaly at her 4 months check up (at her 2 months checkup I was told everything would work itself out). At 4 months I began stretching her daily. It was a definite struggle in the beginning but through a lot of laughing, tickling and entertainment, she soon didn't even realize we were doing stretches. She was also casted for a band and wore it from 5 to 7.5 months, with great results. turned to the left also and still sucks her left thumb. Repositioning was really difficult for us and we didn't have much success until she started wearing the band (her head was flattened in such a way that it would roll to the left and stick there). Don't worry, there are many ways to correct both tort and plagio, it just takes a little bit of work & (8.5 months, STARband grad) > Hi everyone. My three month old son was diagnosed with torticollis > (mild) but no one ever mentioned plagio, not the pediatrician, > pediatric opthamologist or pediatric orthopedic surgeon. I can see > it, though, and learned about it through websites. My son has flat > spots, bossing on the forhead on the side of the flat spots, a fatter > check on one side, etc. Also, because of the tort he likes to turn > to the left while sleeping, and sucks that thumb only. I am very > nervous and upset that none of the docs told me about this! I am > going on my own, and am not sure of the right treatment. Does anyone > know a great doc, physical therapist, or nanny (I'm going back to > work and need someone to be a great stretcher while I'm gone) in the > NYC area? Any other advice? Thank you so much. I really > appreciate the support. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 13, 2002 Report Share Posted December 13, 2002 In a message dated 12/12/2002 7:32:32 PM Eastern Standard Time, jsalzer@... writes: 1. The stretching and positioning for L tort (from the orthoseek website) encourage the child to look to the L, but this is where his head is flat. In other words, he usually keeps his head to L when sleeping, sucks L thumb, L ear is closer to L shoulder, etc. So looking this way makes plagio worse. Same with that hold position. My husband and I have been doing that position for the last few weeks, we love it, our son doesn't mind it. But it seems to me that it is putting more pressure on the flat side, or left side, even though it stretches out his L sternocleidomastoid. Am I making sense? Your making a lot of sense- and this can get very confusing! Our situation was a little different, my son's left tort caused the back right to get flat, because he was unable to rotate his head to the left, and all items of interest he would turn his head right- essentially "rubbing" it flat- *but this was when he got older*-when he was younger, he was very much stuck to the left and positioning him to the right would only cause him to spring back to the left as you described (although it was a battle for him to look left- he had no rotation). It could be that your child has full rotation both ways, and you are only dealing with a tilted posture. Can your child fully rotate to the left? I'm guessing that your child is "stuck" on -that left sided position- also creating that flat spot on the left back since he is constantly on it- and it is probably physically impossible for him to get out of that rut without those exercises- continue to encourage him to look to both his left and right with toys, tv, whatever you think he likes- this way you are working on both sides equally (the right side may also be very weak, usually there is not enough muscle to pull that head back midline). I can certainly see your dilemma, you want to stretch out that muscle but not worsen the plagio in the process. I would concentrate on that neck muscle primarily, because as your son gets older, he will have more ability to help you in this process if his neck muscle has gotten the proper "slack" that it needs to release that head to midline. Without working on the tort, you will have a problem with the plagio for sure, so unfortunately you will have to strike a balance between the two (this was one of our reasons for the DOC band, this allowed us to concentrate on the tort while the band worked on the plagio, what a relief!). It is very hard to reposition a child with tort, the muscle is so tight its like a rubber band effect- pulling that ear back to the shoulder, so hang in there and be as diligent as possible. Especially encourage supervised tummy time, work up to 15+ minute increments, slowly- he'll probably hate this at first, but its very instrumental in working those neck muscles and upper body in general. Try putting him on top of the bed while you clown it up from below. Also, encourage him to use his left arm when reaching for things- all of these things help towards the goal of working out that muscle. Since it sounds like he is not yet able to get out of that left position on his own for brief periods, keep him off the back of his head as much as possible (we also used a rolled up receiving blanket at the base of the neck to prop the head off of the swing, and to prop midline, very tricky to work on both tort and plagio together!). The carrying hold shouldn't really put to much pressure on the back of the head- the child's left cheek should be resting on your right arm- and the side of the head has more pressure than the back (but I did this the opposite of the picture- facing me, right arm on left cheek- more of a cradle hold I guess, so I would continue with that since its great to seperate that ear and shoulder. 2. He seemed to be doing better after we initially began stretching him, about 2 weeks ago, then suddenly much worse. Has that ever happened to you? Maybe we slacked off in the streching, but could things actually get worse than they started out? It could be that your son has reached a growth spurt, milestone (teething, rolling), or sick- many times we felt like we did great, and then he would revert back to tilting (still does this on occassion, he's got a bad cold now and the 5 degree tilt is back- initially he was also ear to shoulder, very severe)- so needless to say, the hardest part about tort is being patient- its not an overnight fix and generally they want you to monitor that muscle until age 2, because there are so many milestones, sickness, teething, that can poop them out and make it harder for them to maintain that posture to the same degree as they do when well. But, the good thing is that through your hard work in stretching and positioning, and correcting that tilted posture with props, your child will gain the ability to do this on his own and it will get easier. The tilt is the very last thing to go- so don't get too discouraged. My son was dx at 2 months, in formal pt 2x a week from 3-9/10 months, and he is nearly 2 now, resolved, but we still see the tilt on those sick days, but know that his muscle is fully stretched and the tilt will go away again. As your child gets older, righting exercises help with the tilt, by tilting your child left, the body has a natural desire to keep the head straight, so this makes that right muscle pull the head back- very important so that the right muscle gains enough strength to be able to pull that head back midline (concentrate on stretching out the muscle, it sounds like he's not quite ready for the righting exercises). Many parents think that stretching out the tort (tight) muscle will resolve the tilt, but in some cases, the right muscle needs work so that it can pull that head midline, now that the "slack" is there to allow that to happen. Good luck and I hope this helps you. Please feel free to email me, I have been in your shoes and was so very grateful for any advice, so I would love to return the favor to a mom like yourself! ) ' Mom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 13, 2002 Report Share Posted December 13, 2002 All I can add here is thank goodness for !!!!!!! Marci > In a message dated 12/12/2002 7:32:32 PM Eastern Standard Time, > jsalzer@a... writes: > > > 1. The stretching and positioning for L tort (from the orthoseek website) > > encourage the child to look to the L, but this is where his head is flat. > > In other words, he usually keeps his head to L when sleeping, sucks L > > thumb, L ear is closer to L shoulder, etc. So looking this way makes > > plagio worse. Same with that hold position. My husband and I have been > > doing that position for the last few weeks, we love it, our son doesn't > > mind it. But it seems to me that it is putting more pressure on the flat > > side, or left side, even though it stretches out his L sternocleidomastoid. > > Am I making sense? > > > > Your making a lot of sense- and this can get very confusing! Our situation > was a little different, my son's left tort caused the back right to get flat, > because he was unable to rotate his head to the left, and all items of > interest he would turn his head right- essentially " rubbing " it flat- *but > this was when he got older*-when he was younger, he was very much stuck to > the left and positioning him to the right would only cause him to spring back > to the left as you described (although it was a battle for him to look left- > he had no rotation). It could be that your child has full rotation both > ways, and you are only dealing with a tilted posture. Can your child fully > rotate to the left? I'm guessing that your child is " stuck " on -that left > sided position- also creating that flat spot on the left back since he is > constantly on it- and it is probably physically impossible for him to get out > of that rut without those exercises- continue to encourage him to look to > both his left and right with toys, tv, whatever you think he likes- this way > you are working on both sides equally (the right side may also be very weak, > usually there is not enough muscle to pull that head back midline). I can > certainly see your dilemma, you want to stretch out that muscle but not > worsen the plagio in the process. I would concentrate on that neck muscle > primarily, because as your son gets older, he will have more ability to help > you in this process if his neck muscle has gotten the proper " slack " that it > needs to release that head to midline. Without working on the tort, you will > have a problem with the plagio for sure, so unfortunately you will have to > strike a balance between the two (this was one of our reasons for the DOC > band, this allowed us to concentrate on the tort while the band worked on the > plagio, what a relief!). It is very hard to reposition a child with tort, > the muscle is so tight its like a rubber band effect- pulling that ear back > to the shoulder, so hang in there and be as diligent as possible. Especially > encourage supervised tummy time, work up to 15+ minute increments, slowly- > he'll probably hate this at first, but its very instrumental in working those > neck muscles and upper body in general. Try putting him on top of the bed > while you clown it up from below. Also, encourage him to use his left arm > when reaching for things- all of these things help towards the goal of > working out that muscle. Since it sounds like he is not yet able to get out > of that left position on his own for brief periods, keep him off the back of > his head as much as possible (we also used a rolled up receiving blanket at > the base of the neck to prop the head off of the swing, and to prop midline, > very tricky to work on both tort and plagio together!). The carrying hold > shouldn't really put to much pressure on the back of the head- the child's > left cheek should be resting on your right arm- and the side of the head has > more pressure than the back (but I did this the opposite of the picture- > facing me, right arm on left cheek- more of a cradle hold I guess, so I > would continue with that since its great to seperate that ear and shoulder. > > 2. He seemed to be doing better after we initially began stretching him, > about 2 > > weeks ago, then suddenly much worse. Has that ever happened to you? Maybe > > we slacked off in the streching, but could things actually get worse than > > they started out? > > > > It could be that your son has reached a growth spurt, milestone (teething, > > rolling), or sick- many times we felt like we did great, and then he would > > revert back to tilting (still does this on occassion, he's got a bad cold > > now and the 5 degree tilt is back- initially he was also ear to shoulder, > > very severe)- so needless to say, the hardest part about tort is being > > patient- its not an overnight fix and generally they want you to monitor > > that muscle until age 2, because there are so many milestones, sickness, > > teething, that can poop them out and make it harder for them to maintain > > that posture to the same degree as they do when well. But, the good thing > > is that through your hard work in stretching and positioning, and > > correcting that tilted posture with props, your child will gain the ability > > to do this on his own and it will get easier. The tilt is the very last > > thing to go- so don't get too discouraged. My son was dx at 2 months, in > > formal pt 2x a week from 3-9/10 months, and he is nearly 2 now, resolved, > > but we still see the tilt on those sick days, but know that his muscle is > > fully stretched and the tilt will go away again. > > As your child gets older, righting exercises help with the tilt, by tilting > > your child left, the body has a natural desire to keep the head straight, > > so this makes that right muscle pull the head back- very important so that > > the right muscle gains enough strength to be able to pull that head back > > midline (concentrate on stretching out the muscle, it sounds like he's not > > quite ready for the righting exercises). Many parents think that > > stretching out the tort (tight) muscle will resolve the tilt, but in some > > cases, the right muscle needs work so that it can pull that head midline, > > now that the " slack " is there to allow that to happen. Good luck and I > > hope this helps you. Please feel free to email me, I have been in your > > shoes and was so very grateful for any advice, so I would love to return > > the favor to a mom like yourself! ) > > > > > > ' Mom > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 14, 2002 Report Share Posted December 14, 2002 thank you so much for your great info and support! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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