MSNBC doctor--long

[Guest guest]

Hi. The MSNBC doctor wrote me back just a few hours after I sent the

e-mail. He was very nice and said that he was concerned about being

misinterpreted. He agreed that there were many cases in which

children need additional intervention to help round out their heads,

but maintained that most cases of plagio caused by back sleeping do

round out on their own. In the letter, he said he made exceptions for

children with torticollis, premature suture closing, and who had

undergone intrauterine compression--he said these kids need

additional intervention. (As far as I can tell from being in this

group, these are big and important exceptions.)

He went on to say that he liked my suggestion that he do another

report on the subject of head flattening that would include

information about treatment for children whose plagio requires

intervention.

I wrote back to him and said that most parents and some pediatricians

really need to hear about the distinction he makes between causes of

plagio so that they can take early action when the case falls into

his second category. I told him about this group and said that a huge

number of us found ourselves in the second category but were given

the kind of advice he's giving for cases that will change on their

own.

I then said I was very happy that he was considering doing another

report to include the options available to treat these other cases of

head flattening. And then I thanked him for helping me to understand

the distinctions he makes in diagnosing this condition.

So--let's watch MSNBC to see what happens next. I've never seen him

on television; I just read the transcript of his presentation on the

MSNBC Web site. His name is Dr. Mark Widome and he does regular

reports about kids' health.

He also said nice things about Conor's neurosurgeon, with whom he's

worked (Neurosurgeon: Conor should have been sent to him at 6

months). His office is right next door to my pediatrician's office;

my former (It will round out on its own) and current ped are in

practice together but all of these people are part of the med school

faculty. What a range of opinions!

Anyway, his words were encouraging. Maybe he'll do a story about

treatments and maybe more people will learn about their options.

, Conor's mom, central PA