Northern New York

[Guest guest]

Hi~

I am new to this group and it appears that most of you moms are very

knowledgable about plagio. I have posted before about repositioning my

son. I think that the repositioning is starting to work, however I am

skeptical and think that he still might need a band. He is 7 1/2 mo.

old and I started repositioning at 5 1/2 mo. old. I have asked our

doctors about banding, but they don't think that he needs it. They say

that it will fix itself over time and just keep him off of it. They

told me that he won't get that " nice rounded " look like before, but not

to worry it will get better. I posted some pics to get some opinions

in the photos section under " Aiden. " His head is still pretty flat in

back and I don't know if the repositioning will fix that. Any

suggestions will be appreciated. I live in northern new york by

syracuse. I am familiar with Cranial Tech and have looked them up.

How does the Starband work and can any orthotist do them? Thanks, Amy

[Guest guest]

Hi,

You would want to go to an ortho who is experienced in banding babies,

not just any starband ortho. The reason is some do many types of

orthotics and may only band a few babies, so don't have enough

experience. Some orthos do only banding, or at least a lot of bands

so really know what they are doing. Here is a page of starscanner

locations. there are also other starband orthos who do plaster

casting, so this list isn't all starband providers:

http://orthomerica.com/technology/scan_locations.htm

I looked at Aiden's pics and I see some plagio (asymmetry) and some

brachy (flat in back and extra width) but it doesn't look severe. Of

course it is hard to tell from pics. I think he would do well in a

band. Some parents from NYC choose to go to Paramus NJ, or you might

want to go to Clinton CT, but both seem quite far from you (not sure

exactly where you are).

Starband, Docband, and Hanger band all work in a similar manner. They

are active bands which means they hold growth in prominent areas by

applying gentle pressure, and leave room in the flat areas for growth.

They have a foam lining that is scraped out to make more room as the

baby grows. All the bands are worn 23 hours a day. CT (cranial

tech/docband) does only banding, so their staff is well trained. With

other orthos experience in banding varies so you need to check them

out. we had very good result for brachy from a starband. You can see

sydney's before and after pics in the photos section under Our Plagio

Babies S/Sydney M.

good luck & let us know what you decide.

-christine

sydney 2 yrs starband grad

>

> Hi~

> I am new to this group and it appears that most of you moms are very

> knowledgable about plagio. I have posted before about repositioning my

> son. I think that the repositioning is starting to work, however I am

> skeptical and think that he still might need a band. He is 7 1/2 mo.

> old and I started repositioning at 5 1/2 mo. old. I have asked our

> doctors about banding, but they don't think that he needs it. They say

> that it will fix itself over time and just keep him off of it. They

> told me that he won't get that " nice rounded " look like before, but not

> to worry it will get better. I posted some pics to get some opinions

> in the photos section under " Aiden. " His head is still pretty flat in

> back and I don't know if the repositioning will fix that. Any

> suggestions will be appreciated. I live in northern new york by

> syracuse. I am familiar with Cranial Tech and have looked them up.

> How does the Starband work and can any orthotist do them? Thanks, Amy

>

[Guest guest]

Thanks for the info! It was very helpful. I have been told that his plagio and brachy are mild, but I still see it. I find myself comparing his head to other infants that we see out. It still bothers me that it is flat and has extra width. I want to be able to fix it for him while we still can. I don't want him to grow up with a mishapen head. I found a starband scanner in rochester which is about 3 hours away so not too bad. How do they work? Do they have their own clinic like docband? Do you have to have a prescription or referrel to go to the starband and get a consult? I don't think my insurance will cover it from what I have

read. Do you know around how much it will cost? I will check out your photo's. How long did your daughter wear her band for with brachy? I heard that brachy takes a little longer to fix? Thanks for your response. Amy

Re: Northern New York

Hi,You would want to go to an ortho who is experienced in banding babies,not just any starband ortho. The reason is some do many types oforthotics and may only band a few babies, so don't have enoughexperience. Some orthos do only banding, or at least a lot of bands so really know what they are doing. Here is a page of starscannerlocations. there are also other starband orthos who do plastercasting, so this list isn't all starband providers:http://orthomerica. com/technology/ scan_locations. htmI looked at Aiden's pics and I see some plagio (asymmetry) and somebrachy (flat in back and extra width) but it doesn't look severe. Ofcourse it is hard to tell from pics. I think he would do well in aband. Some parents from NYC choose to go to Paramus NJ, or you mightwant to go to Clinton CT, but both seem quite

far from you (not sureexactly where you are). Starband, Docband, and Hanger band all work in a similar manner. Theyare active bands which means they hold growth in prominent areas byapplying gentle pressure, and leave room in the flat areas for growth.They have a foam lining that is scraped out to make more room as thebaby grows. All the bands are worn 23 hours a day. CT (cranialtech/docband) does only banding, so their staff is well trained. Withother orthos experience in banding varies so you need to check themout. we had very good result for brachy from a starband. You can seesydney's before and after pics in the photos section under Our PlagioBabies S/Sydney M.good luck & let us know what you decide.-christinesydney 2 yrs starband grad>> Hi~> I am new to this group and it appears that most of you moms are very > knowledgable about plagio. I have posted before about repositioning my > son. I think that the repositioning is starting to work, however I am > skeptical and think that he still might need a band. He is 7 1/2 mo. > old and I started repositioning at 5 1/2 mo. old. I have asked our > doctors about banding, but they don't think that he needs it. They say > that it will fix itself over time and just keep him off of it. They > told me that he won't get that "nice rounded" look like before, but not > to worry it will get better. I posted some pics to get some opinions > in the photos section under "Aiden." His head is still pretty flat in > back and I don't know if the

repositioning will fix that. Any > suggestions will be appreciated. I live in northern new york by > syracuse. I am familiar with Cranial Tech and have looked them up. > How does the Starband work and can any orthotist do them? Thanks, Amy>

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[Guest guest]

We are in upstate NY near Saratoga Springs and travel to the CT in Clinton, CT. It is a three hour trip each way for us though, so I'm sure that's out of the question for you. What about Hanger?

Amy in NY

Logan 10 mos old/11 weeks in Doc band

Plagiocephaly From: aderry5@...Date: Sat, 3 May 2008 05:42:32 +0000Subject: Northern New York

Hi~I am new to this group and it appears that most of you moms are very knowledgable about plagio. I have posted before about repositioning my son. I think that the repositioning is starting to work, however I am skeptical and think that he still might need a band. He is 7 1/2 mo. old and I started repositioning at 5 1/2 mo. old. I have asked our doctors about banding, but they don't think that he needs it. They say that it will fix itself over time and just keep him off of it. They told me that he won't get that "nice rounded" look like before, but not to worry it will get better. I posted some pics to get some opinions in the photos section under "Aiden." His head is still pretty flat in back and I don't know if the repositioning will fix that. Any suggestions will be appreciated. I live in northern new york by syracuse. I am familiar with Cranial Tech and have looked them up. How does the Starband work and can any orthotist do them? Thanks, Amy Windows Live SkyDrive lets you share files with faraway friends. Start sharing.

[Guest guest]

Hi Amy~

Where is Hanger at? I will have to look into it. We are in watertown ny. About an hour and half north of syracuse. There is a CT in Paramus NJ that I found that and is about 5 hours. I am willing to do it if we need to.

Amy

Northern New York

Hi~I am new to this group and it appears that most of you moms are very knowledgable about plagio. I have posted before about repositioning my son. I think that the repositioning is starting to work, however I am skeptical and think that he still might need a band. He is 7 1/2 mo. old and I started repositioning at 5 1/2 mo. old. I have asked our doctors about banding, but they don't think that he needs it. They say that it will fix itself over time and just keep him off of it. They told me that he won't get that "nice rounded" look like before, but not to worry it will get better. I posted some pics to get some opinions in the photos section under "Aiden." His head is still pretty flat in back and I don't know if the repositioning will fix that. Any suggestions will be appreciated. I live in northern new york by syracuse. I am familiar with Cranial Tech and have looked them up.

How does the Starband work and can any orthotist do them? Thanks, Amy

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[Guest guest]

Hi Amy,

I live in Syracuse

and my daughter (9.5 months old) is in a STAR band. We were referred to

Northern Orthopedic Labs/Don Holmes. They also have an office in Watertown. She has been

in it for about six weeks and we are happy with the progress. I would be happy

to answer any questions if you have them. Good luck!

Kasha

Kasha

Godleski

Syracuse, NY

[Guest guest]

Amy,

I just wanted to let you know that my son was banded at 7.5 months old and I've seen such great results after just 7 weeks in the band which is about half way for us. I have to say that after the first week I saw some changes. It happens pretty fast. It's really amazing! Good luck with everything.

Sybil

From: Amy Derry <aderry5@...>Subject: Re: Re: Northern New YorkPlagiocephaly Date: Monday, May 5, 2008, 8:56 PM

Hi Kasha~ Thankyou that is very helpful. Did you see a specialist or were you referred by your peds? Would you recommend a physician? We have a follow up appointment next week with a specialist and I think I am going to ask for a STAR band prescription. They told me to keep repositioning, but it is hard with a 7 1/2 month old. It is more brachiocephaly than plagio. (a little of each) However, I just want to make sure it is fixed. Since your daughter started treatment around 8 months have you noticed a difference? My son will be 8 months in a couple of weeks. It is good to hear of someone that does a good job in the area though. Did he do the plaster cast or was it by the star scanner? Does your daughter mind the band or is it pretty light weight? Did your insurance cover any of the cost? Sorry lots of questions... it is all kind of overwelming. It

just lags in the back of my mind all the time that I need to do something about it. Thanks!!

Amy

watertown NY

Re: Northern New York

Hi Amy,

I live in Syracuse and my daughter (9.5 months old) is in a STAR band. We were referred to Northern Orthopedic Labs/Don Holmes. They also have an office in Watertown . She has been in it for about six weeks and we are happy with the progress. I would be happy to answer any questions if you have them. Good luck!

Kasha

Kasha Godleski Syracuse , NY

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[Guest guest]

Hi Kasha~

We ended up getting a referral from our craniofacial specialist to Northern Orthopedic Labs with Don Holmes. Are you happy with him as an orthotist? Have you seen good results? We got quoted 3500.00 and it seems a bit pricey from what others have been paying. I ended up just going ahead and scheduling an appt. before we get the authorization. Did you have good luck with your insurance? Do you know why they charge more? I just wanted to know if you could tell me a little bit about your experience and if you have been happy with it.

Thanks,

Amy

Watertown NY

Re: Northern New York

Hi Amy,

I live in Syracuse and my daughter (9.5 months old) is in a STAR band. We were referred to Northern Orthopedic Labs/Don Holmes. They also have an office in Watertown . She has been in it for about six weeks and we are happy with the progress. I would be happy to answer any questions if you have them. Good luck!

Kasha

Kasha Godleski Syracuse , NY

[Guest guest]

Hi Amy,

I sent you a long message to your personal account last week

but I guess you didn’t get it (it could be my server here at work).

Anyway, this is what I wrote…sorry so long for the listserv.

Hi Amy,

Let me see if I can answer all of your questions (you sound

like me a couple of weeks ago…you are doing the right thing by asking

lots and lots of questions)….

Our ped referred us to University Otolaryngology Associates

and we saw Dr. Butts who specializes in cranio facial problems (funny name for

a head doctor – poor thing). Our appt was very short with her. She agreed

that Sara has a flat head – more brachio too. She encouraged the

repositioning and wanted to see us back in a month. Since I did some research

and knew the window to fix this was small I pushed her a bit so she said to do

the repositioning and see the orthotic specialist at the same time. That way if

we didn’t see much improvement in a couple of weeks we could move quickly

through that process. I have to say I was put off at first by the orthotic

place. They called me three times in 48 hours to make the appt. I was so not

ready to go down the helmet road (emotionally) that it freaked me out a bit.

But I made the appt and met with the orthotic “guy”/Don Holmes

within a week or so. He measured her head, told me her case was not mild or

severe…middle of the road…but thought a helmet would help. So I did

the casting that day (I wasn’t ready for that either but it ended up

being no big deal). The helmet was ready in two weeks. When we first got it she

wore it for an hour on, an hour off. The next day was two hours on, one hour

off, and then the next was three hours on, hour off and then full time (23

hours a day) after that. Since my husband and I both work, she is in daycare

and her teachers were great about it.

OK, let me back up. I did say we did the casting. The place

we went to didn’t have an option to scan. I am in touch with another

local woman who went to Hangar Orthopedic and they did a scan there. (I am not

familiar with a local Hangar place but I have read a lot about Hangar on the this

group and it seems there are a lot of complaints with Hangar bands/helmets.)

The STARband is 6 or 7 ounces I think. It really doesn’t bother Sara at

all. She gets a little itchy when we take it off and it seems that she almost

prefers to have it on. Weird but I think she is just so used to it.

Our insurance (Excellus – Blue Cross/Blue Shield) has

covered all of it. We haven’t had one co-pay and the orthotic place has

taken care of everything. Thank goodness!

I have attached a photo of Sara (email me at kgodleski@... and I will try to send it

to you again). It is a little disturbing to see a baby in a helmet at first but

you really do get used to it. Honestly, sometimes I forget that she has it on.

I don’t know if I mentioned this but she is a twin. Her brother has a bit

of flat spot on one side of his head but it is not that noticeable so I did not

pursue a helmet for him. I guess plagio/brachy is more common in twins. Who

knew?

You are really doing the right thing. While this will be

hard, you have to remember that it is such a short amount of time in her life.

Sara could wear her helmet for up to six months…well worth it to have her

head shape corrected for the rest of her life! We are seeing some results. At

our four week check, the orthotic “guy” did a tracing of her head

and compared it to the first one he did and we could see the back side of her

head coming out a bit. She is also growing more hair so I think that covers it

pretty well. We will stick with it for a couple of more months and see how we

do. We are optimistic and happy with our decision to band.

On a side note…There are two things I think I would

have done differently. I would have started this earlier. I talked to our ped

about Sara’s head at our four month appt and he said try to keep her off

of it (not helpful). Then at our six month the ped made the referral. Neither

of us can change that one…we start when we start. And the other thing is

that I wish I had asked Dr. Butts about all the different orthotic places in

the area. I would have done more research on the different helmets/bands and

practitioners (like who casts and who scans, what kind of helmets do they use,

etc). I am happy with ours but I wonder if we could have seen someone even

better. Just some words of advice…

I hope all this helps. Please let me know if I can answer

any other questions. Good luck and be strong! J

Kasha