Guest guest Posted December 29, 2004 Report Share Posted December 29, 2004 There is a fairly prestigious children's hospital in my area and one of the doctors (a neurosurgon) was listed at http://www.plagiocephaly.org/. I called his office today to check on wait times for an evaluation just in case we decide to get a second opinion. I spok with the nurse and she said that he stopped doing plagiocephaly evals because they now refer to someone else who is " great " with treating plagiocephaly. They gave me the number of the practice, and I asked for the doctor's name. It's the doctor we already saw! LOL! Oh well, that's not a route to get a second opinion, but it did make me feel more confident about the specialist we are currently using. Rick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 29, 2004 Report Share Posted December 29, 2004 Hi Rick, You may have discussed this option already on this forum for a second opinion but I think that going to Cranial Tech for a consult is a good idea, if you are located near one. Not sure what part of the country you are in. We saw two specialists (to get a second opinion) and consulted with both Cranial Tech and an orthotics department of a large children's hospital. Our son was considered mild- moderate but we were not happy with his headshape and got prescriptions from each specialist. One specialist didn't think it was necessary while the other one recommended it (but both wrote a prescription). Both these specialists are very well known in the plagio field. He was banded at 9.5 months at Cranial Tech and grew well so got good correction. Looking back, if I had the level of knowledge and understanding of plagio that I do now (and I'm certainly not an expert) I likely would not go to a specialist. Personally, I would likely rely on Cranial Tech's recommendation and get our ped to write the prescription. Our ped could order the skull series or CT scan to rule out cranio if he felt it was necessary. I guess what I am saying is that I feel to decision whether or not to band your child is ultimately your decision, not the specialist. Most specialists will write the prescription if you ask them to. For me personally, the decision to band or not would come down to two things: 1) Cranial Tech's recommendation 2) How I felt about my child's headshape (I would likely band if I was not happy with the headshape) On a side note, for what it is worth, I did make a few comments a few weeks ago on the article (from New Zealand) you referred to earlier if you want to search the archives under my username. Good luck with your decision. All the best, Mark (dad to , DOCgrad 01/19/04) > There is a fairly prestigious children's hospital in my area and one of the doctors (a neurosurgon) was listed at http://www.plagiocephaly.org/. > > I called his office today to check on wait times for an evaluation just in case we decide to get a second opinion. I spok with the nurse and she said that he stopped doing plagiocephaly evals because they now refer to someone else who is " great " with treating plagiocephaly. They gave me the number of the practice, and I asked for the doctor's name. It's the doctor we already saw! LOL! Oh well, that's not a route to get a second opinion, but it did make me feel more confident about the specialist we are currently using. > > Rick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 29, 2004 Report Share Posted December 29, 2004 that's funny. Sounds like something that would happen to me. My son has been in his DOC Band for 6wks now (8 more weeks to go) and i majorly debated getting it and now that i look back on it i wouldn't have done anything different. He has had major improvement. He was 8 1/2 months old when he got his band and he has brachy/mild tort. If you saw his head now you'd never know he had a flat head. His looked like a complete 90 degree angle. Ashburn, VA >From: <rhandel@...> >Reply-Plagiocephaly ><Plagiocephaly > >Subject: funny story (2nd opinion) >Date: Wed, 29 Dec 2004 11:15:20 -0500 > >There is a fairly prestigious children's hospital in my area and one of the >doctors (a neurosurgon) was listed at http://www.plagiocephaly.org/. > >I called his office today to check on wait times for an evaluation just in >case we decide to get a second opinion. I spok with the nurse and she said >that he stopped doing plagiocephaly evals because they now refer to someone >else who is " great " with treating plagiocephaly. They gave me the number >of the practice, and I asked for the doctor's name. It's the doctor we >already saw! LOL! Oh well, that's not a route to get a second opinion, >but it did make me feel more confident about the specialist we are >currently using. > >Rick > > _________________________________________________________________ Don’t just search. Find. Check out the new MSN Search! http://search.msn.click-url.com/go/onm00200636ave/direct/01/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 29, 2004 Report Share Posted December 29, 2004 > > From: " deeman12342001 " <deeman12342001@...> > Date: 2004/12/29 Wed PM 01:28:43 EST > Plagiocephaly > Subject: Re: funny story (2nd opinion) > > Hi Rick, >You may have discussed this option already on this forum for >a second opinion but I think >that going to Cranial Tech for a consult is a good idea, if >you are located near one. Not >sure what part of the country you are in. Do they actually do the weekly adjustments there? If so, that wouldn't work because the closest one is about 3.5 hours away. >We saw two specialists (to get a second opinion) and He was >banded at 9.5 months at Cranial Tech and grew well so got >good >correction. That's reassuring. >I guess what I am saying is that I feel to decision whether >or not to band your child is >ultimately your decision, not the specialist. Most >specialists will write the prescription if >you ask them to. Yes, I know. If we are not happy in a couple of months we will go that route. >For me personally, the decision to band or not would come >down to two things: >1) Cranial Tech's recommendation >2) How I felt about my child's headshape (I would likely >band if I was not happy with the >headshape) I think #2 is going to weigh the most in our minds. Personally -- not to sound too jaded --- I'm a little uncomfortable with the idea of going to the manufacturer for a recommendation about whether or not to buy the product. Not to be overly cynical (for all I know cranial tech may be totally objective and fantastic), but it is a business and I would think they would want to sell as many as possible. We may go that route, but I don't know if I'd be totally comfortable with their recommendation if I couldn't find an independent doctor that agrees. But our impression of his head shape will weigh most heavily without a doubt. Rick Hi Rick, You may have discussed this option already on this forum for a second opinion but I think that going to Cranial Tech for a consult is a good idea, if you are located near one. Not sure what part of the country you are in. We saw two specialists (to get a second opinion) and consulted with both Cranial Tech and an orthotics department of a large children's hospital. Our son was considered mild- moderate but we were not happy with his headshape and got prescriptions from each specialist. One specialist didn't think it was necessary while the other one recommended it (but both wrote a prescription). Both these specialists are very well known in the plagio field. He was banded at 9.5 months at Cranial Tech and grew well so got good correction. Looking back, if I had the level of knowledge and understanding of plagio that I do now (and I'm certainly not an expert) I likely would not go to a specialist. Personally, I would likely rely on Cranial Tech's recommendation and get our ped to write the prescription. Our ped could order the skull series or CT scan to rule out cranio if he felt it was necessary. I guess what I am saying is that I feel to decision whether or not to band your child is ultimately your decision, not the specialist. Most specialists will write the prescription if you ask them to. For me personally, the decision to band or not would come down to two things: 1) Cranial Tech's recommendation 2) How I felt about my child's headshape (I would likely band if I was not happy with the headshape) On a side note, for what it is worth, I did make a few comments a few weeks ago on the article (from New Zealand) you referred to earlier if you want to search the archives under my username. Good luck with your decision. All the best, Mark (dad to , DOCgrad 01/19/04) > There is a fairly prestigious children's hospital in my area and one of the doctors (a neurosurgon) was listed at http://www.plagiocephaly.org/. > > I called his office today to check on wait times for an evaluation just in case we decide to get a second opinion. I spok with the nurse and she said that he stopped doing plagiocephaly evals because they now refer to someone else who is " great " with treating plagiocephaly. They gave me the number of the practice, and I asked for the doctor's name. It's the doctor we already saw! LOL! Oh well, that's not a route to get a second opinion, but it did make me feel more confident about the specialist we are currently using. > > Rick For more plagio info Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 29, 2004 Report Share Posted December 29, 2004 hi rick. When we went to CT for our first consultation appt. they recommended that we get a band but didn't force us into our decision. They took 's pic's and showed us all their before and after pic's and even made sure to show us pic's of patients at his age with brachy also. They informed us about brachy, told us my son had tort, and facial assymetry, which we were completely unaware of but once it was pointed out i could completely see it. The tech also said that just by looking at my son she could tell that he slept in his bouncy chair a lot because of his head shape. I started crying. Once she said that i was hooked. It took us about a week to firmly decide that we were going with the band and in that time we didn't receive one call, letter, email, from CT asking us if we were going to get the band or not. The only call we got was from the office asst. to inform us of what our insurance would and would not cover. From what i've read on the board in the past is that they give you a recommendation but they do not harrass you to get their product. Of course they would rather you take their product but they will not make you and harrass you into doing it. I think hearing everything from CT was what i needed to come to terms with the fact that my son did have a medical condition and it needed to be treated. The tech's at CT are like family to us now. Just today we brought the brownies in and sat and talked with the ladies about misc. info. Also one other thing that is nice to know is that CT sends their techs every year to refresher training courses and they have very extensive training regarding plagio and tort. Anyway, i could go on and on all day about how happy we are with CT but i won't bore you anymore! Please let us know if you go to CT, what they say, and what your decision is regarding your child. Good luck to you! Ashburn, VA >From: <rhandel@...> >Reply-Plagiocephaly ><Plagiocephaly > >Subject: Re: Re: funny story (2nd opinion) >Date: Wed, 29 Dec 2004 14:06:03 -0500 > > > > > > From: " deeman12342001 " <deeman12342001@...> > > Date: 2004/12/29 Wed PM 01:28:43 EST > > Plagiocephaly > > Subject: Re: funny story (2nd opinion) > > > > Hi Rick, > > >You may have discussed this option already on this forum for >a second >opinion but I think > >that going to Cranial Tech for a consult is a good idea, if >you are >located near one. Not > >sure what part of the country you are in. > >Do they actually do the weekly adjustments there? If so, that wouldn't >work because the closest one is about 3.5 hours away. > > >We saw two specialists (to get a second opinion) and He was >banded at >9.5 months at Cranial Tech and grew well so got >good > >correction. > >That's reassuring. > > > > >I guess what I am saying is that I feel to decision whether >or not to >band your child is > >ultimately your decision, not the specialist. Most >specialists will >write the prescription if > >you ask them to. > >Yes, I know. If we are not happy in a couple of months we will go that >route. > > >For me personally, the decision to band or not would come >down to two >things: > >1) Cranial Tech's recommendation > >2) How I felt about my child's headshape (I would likely >band if I was >not happy with the > >headshape) > >I think #2 is going to weigh the most in our minds. Personally -- not to >sound too jaded --- I'm a little uncomfortable with the idea of going to >the manufacturer for a recommendation about whether or not to buy the >product. Not to be overly cynical (for all I know cranial tech may be >totally objective and fantastic), but it is a business and I would think >they would want to sell as many as possible. We may go that route, but I >don't know if I'd be totally comfortable with their recommendation if I >couldn't find an independent doctor that agrees. But our impression of his >head shape will weigh most heavily without a doubt. > >Rick > > > _________________________________________________________________ On the road to retirement? Check out MSN Life Events for advice on how to get there! http://lifeevents.msn.com/category.aspx?cid=Retirement Hi Rick, You may have discussed this option already on this forum for a second opinion but I think that going to Cranial Tech for a consult is a good idea, if you are located near one. Not sure what part of the country you are in. We saw two specialists (to get a second opinion) and consulted with both Cranial Tech and an orthotics department of a large children's hospital. Our son was considered mild- moderate but we were not happy with his headshape and got prescriptions from each specialist. One specialist didn't think it was necessary while the other one recommended it (but both wrote a prescription). Both these specialists are very well known in the plagio field. He was banded at 9.5 months at Cranial Tech and grew well so got good correction. Looking back, if I had the level of knowledge and understanding of plagio that I do now (and I'm certainly not an expert) I likely would not go to a specialist. Personally, I would likely rely on Cranial Tech's recommendation and get our ped to write the prescription. Our ped could order the skull series or CT scan to rule out cranio if he felt it was necessary. I guess what I am saying is that I feel to decision whether or not to band your child is ultimately your decision, not the specialist. Most specialists will write the prescription if you ask them to. For me personally, the decision to band or not would come down to two things: 1) Cranial Tech's recommendation 2) How I felt about my child's headshape (I would likely band if I was not happy with the headshape) On a side note, for what it is worth, I did make a few comments a few weeks ago on the article (from New Zealand) you referred to earlier if you want to search the archives under my username. Good luck with your decision. All the best, Mark (dad to , DOCgrad 01/19/04) > There is a fairly prestigious children's hospital in my area and one of the doctors (a neurosurgon) was listed at http://www.plagiocephaly.org/. > > I called his office today to check on wait times for an evaluation just in case we decide to get a second opinion. I spok with the nurse and she said that he stopped doing plagiocephaly evals because they now refer to someone else who is " great " with treating plagiocephaly. They gave me the number of the practice, and I asked for the doctor's name. It's the doctor we already saw! LOL! Oh well, that's not a route to get a second opinion, but it did make me feel more confident about the specialist we are currently using. > > Rick For more plagio info Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 29, 2004 Report Share Posted December 29, 2004 > > From: " redlocks2003 " <redlocks@...> > Date: 2004/12/29 Wed PM 03:35:53 EST > Plagiocephaly > Subject: Re: funny story (2nd opinion) >Rick, >I have heard of one group member here being told by Cranial >Tech " too mild to band, " and one group member being told by >a >Starband practitioner " too mild to band, " so it does >certainly >happen that orthos don't push their product on everyone just >to make >a sale. That's good! >Another point I would consider is that it is the orthos who >are the >ones who take photos, measurements, casts, etc. which, to >me, would >be extremely helpful in deciding what course of action to >take. The >specialists don't take the asymmetry measurements very often >and >provide them to the parents to evaluate with all of the >other >considerations. Also, insurance companies that do pay, >usually >start to pay when the asymmetry is over 2 std deviation for >brachy, >or over 6mm in cranial vault asymmetry, etc. Since we know >insurance companies aren't jumping at the bit to pay out, >these >types of measurements can safely be assumed to be far enough >off the >population mean to be worthy of consideration for treatment. I'd probably just pay out of pocket anyway. I wouldn't want to lose the precious time with an appeal. >Also, it was found that if the same case was seen by >different >medical professionals, pediatricians and neuros were more >likely to >rate it less severe, while plastic surgeons and craniofacial >specialists rated the case more severe. We saw a craniofacial plastic surgeon who apparently gets the bulk of the plagio referrals in our area. He definitely said it was mild and that his recommendation would be not to get a helmet. He made it sound like his does prescribe helmets for quite a few kids. He seemed very receptive to the idea of a helmet if we decide that we really want one at the two month follow up. I liked him. He showed me the tort stretching exercises (his tort is very mild and he can pretty much turn his head almost all the way to the left now after just a week or so of daily exercises)and said something like, " I'd like to see him again in two months, but if you do these exercises, I don't think he will need a helmet. We'll see how he looks in a couple of months. " >. What other >facilities are you considering? I do know that some >Starband >practitioners have Starscanner laser scanning, and some >Hanger >facilities have their Insignia laser scanning. What are my options? I live in Virginia Beach. Rick, I have heard of one group member here being told by Cranial Tech " too mild to band, " and one group member being told by a Starband practitioner " too mild to band, " so it does certainly happen that orthos don't push their product on everyone just to make a sale. Another point I would consider is that it is the orthos who are the ones who take photos, measurements, casts, etc. which, to me, would be extremely helpful in deciding what course of action to take. The specialists don't take the asymmetry measurements very often and provide them to the parents to evaluate with all of the other considerations. Also, insurance companies that do pay, usually start to pay when the asymmetry is over 2 std deviation for brachy, or over 6mm in cranial vault asymmetry, etc. Since we know insurance companies aren't jumping at the bit to pay out, these types of measurements can safely be assumed to be far enough off the population mean to be worthy of consideration for treatment. Also, it was found that if the same case was seen by different medical professionals, pediatricians and neuros were more likely to rate it less severe, while plastic surgeons and craniofacial specialists rated the case more severe. I don't think you mentioned where you were located, but we may have some group members who have gone or checked into the locations you are currently considering. Cranial Tech does benchmark work in the treatment of babies with plagio, brachy, or scaphy. I noticed you said that Cranial Tech was 4 hours one-way away. What other facilities are you considering? I do know that some Starband practitioners have Starscanner laser scanning, and some Hanger facilities have their Insignia laser scanning. Take care, Christie (Mom to Repo'd Remy) > > > > > From: " laura gill " <mamagill@h...> > > Date: 2004/12/29 Wed PM 02:22:43 EST > > Plagiocephaly > > Subject: Re: Re: funny story (2nd opinion) > >Anyway, i could go on > >and on all day about how happy we are with CT but i won't >bore you anymore! > >Please let us know if you go to CT, what they say, and what >your decision is > >regarding your child. Good luck to you! > > > The worst part for us would be that their closest clinic is a good 3.5 to 4 hours (one way) from us. Do they actually do the adjustments each week (or however often they are done) at their clinics only? If so, Cranial Tech is probably not going to be a realistic option for us. > > Rick For more plagio info Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You are posting as a guest. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.