Re: Plagio question (when is it get cured?)

[Guest guest]

Hi,

I was very interested in the question you pose in your post, and I

think others would be as well so I added " when is it cured " to the

subject line in case it attracts more attention that way since I

notice no one else has replied yet. I hope thats OK.

I do know exactly what you mean. My daughter was banded and had good

correction but of course as her mother I can (and do) obsess over the

areas where I feel she is not perfectly symetrically shaped - and

sometimes don't know whether to say that her plagiocephaly is

" resolved " or cured as you say. People at work ask me if the problem

was completely solved by the helmet and I usually say yes to keep it

simple (just because most of my extended family and the doctor and

orthotist believe she was corrected to within a standard head shape

deviation) but inside I don't exactly feel that its completely true

since there are remaining assymetrics that my mama x-ray vision can see.

The insurance question is very interesting - given that perhaps

problems down the road like cross bits and TMJ could result from

plagio - should one declare it as a pre-existing condition if I change

insurance. Thats a good question. I don't know.

This whole question reminds me of the problem of deciding when you are

" done " with helmeting. The head is such a complex shape, and treating

plagiocephaly focusses one's attention so much on even small

assymetries that its tough to make a call on whether you are done or

" cured " . My latest thinking on this is that if a correctable problem

remains, and there is still time - why not try to do it?

One thing my daugher's doctor said when I approached him for a consult

on whether we should get a third helmet (because I still obsessed

about 's assymetries) was that " its important not to

micro-manage the head " . He said that 's head was now more

symetrical that his own daughter's who never developed plagiocephaly.

He also said that when there are only minor problems remaining that it

is difficult to determine where the pressure points should be on the

helmet to yeild the right effect (I thought that was very interesting

and something I had never come accross in the literature on helmets

and plagio). My takaway from this was that 's remaining

assymetries were not, in fact, correctable by a helmet (BTW the

doctor,Dr. Shin,was excellent, does rounds at his cranio facial clinic

WITH a Cranial Tech orthotist who fitted 's helmets, and is in

the same cranio-facial team of surgeons with Dr. Persing - first

author of the recent AAP paper on preventing and treating skull

deformation - so even though I do believe I can see real assymetries

in my daughter's head - his advice was always excellent I trusted his

opinion on the third helmet question).

Of course I do still see the assymetries and wonder if was

" cured " as you are wondering about your daughter. I've obsessed about

this for so long I'm starting to think I'm the one who needs to be

cured of thinking about it!

Perhaps my biggest problem is that my older daughter's head (age 4) is

a model of symmetry - so my only other real experience with the shape

of a child's head is (perhaps) an exceptionally symmetrical one.

-

Mom to , 2 doc bands (3/10/03-8/22/03)

--- In Plagiocephaly , " mommieflyz " <janickovic@a...>

wrote:

> My daughter, Madsion graduated last Halloween. Her head is not near

> perfect, yet we did get wonderful results. My question is this: She

> still has plagio, right? I mean, her head is better, but it's not

> like the condition is gone. Does anyone know what I am trying to ask?

> Let's say I got new insurance, do I put this down? Just wondering how

> I explain to people. At work I showed her picture and was explaining

> and some one asked, does it mean she is cured, now that she doesn't

> have to wear her helmet? And then I was asked if we were goning to

> get another helmet for her, she will be 2 At the end of April, so,

> no, I don't think we'd see much more improvement.

>

> Danette

[Guest guest]

Hi,

Another question I have is, what are the chances that the head can become reflattened after the helmet comes off? What sort of preventive measures are needed?

Sara, (8/2/03) Starband

Indiana

[Guest guest]

Hi,

I would think heads are supposed to be symmetrical really! I think

the doctors don't tell parents this to make us feel better! But I

suppose if the head is wihin the normal range then for insurance

purposes the plagio would not be an issue, i.e. cured.

I don't mean that all heads should be a perfect sphere but unless

there are external forces pressing on it I would have thought they

would be symmetrical. I wonder why your doctor's daughter's head is

not symmetrical.

However, having said that your child's head is within the normal

range so she is " like " her peers so that's great! I guess we

shouldn't obssess but I know exactly how you feel because I do the

same thing!

I'd like to see some information about normal variations in head

shapes etc. but I haven't found any info. about that.

> > My daughter, Madsion graduated last Halloween. Her head is not

near

> > perfect, yet we did get wonderful results. My question is this:

She

> > still has plagio, right? I mean, her head is better, but it's

not

> > like the condition is gone. Does anyone know what I am trying to

ask?

> > Let's say I got new insurance, do I put this down? Just

wondering how

> > I explain to people. At work I showed her picture and was

explaining

> > and some one asked, does it mean she is cured, now that she

doesn't

> > have to wear her helmet? And then I was asked if we were goning

to

> > get another helmet for her, she will be 2 At the end of April,

so,

> > no, I don't think we'd see much more improvement.

> >

> > Danette