Questions after 3 month ped appt tonight, re: torticollis

DS just had his 3 month checkup and the doctor said he may need physical therapy because he favors one side over the other. he told me to go back over pictures and if hes leaning to one side i need to call a physical therapist. has anyone had to do this?

his head is also flat. i was doing tummy time all the time with him but hes been in daycare now for 2 weeks and they dont do it. do you think they would put him on his belly in the crib? he cant spend 11 hours at daycare on his back.

good news is he now weighs 14lbs and is 25in. he took his polio and hep b shot like a champ. only screamed for 5 minutes.

Message edited 1/14/2010 10:04:49 PM.

Re: Questions after 3 month ped appt tonight

no comments?

Re: Questions after 3 month ped appt tonight

Hey there, it sounds like torticollis, if you put that in the subject I am sure you will get some helpful responses.
I know several moms here have had little ones with it.

I don't really know anything about it though, sorry

Re: Questions after 3 month ped appt tonight

i can't respond about the pt issue but as far as tummy time, etc. if you are concerned I would speak with daycare. I am not sure if my dd did tummy time at daycare but they had her out a lot. I have had two friends look at my center and both have told me they see her out of her crib and rollling around and stuff on a playmat. Everything that I have asked my center to do or work on with my daughter - they have. They have told me they want to have consistency at home and at school.

I don't have a lot of advice for you since my dd is only 6 months old...but if you have questions maybe call the drs. office. Push back and ask questions until you are comfortable

Message edited 1/14/2010 10:01:20 PM.

Re: Questions after 3 month ped appt tonight, re: torticollis

thanks guys! i changed the topic and im going to talk to the daycare tomorrow.

Re: Questions after 3 month ped appt tonight, re: torticollis

my dd had it...and she eventually grew out of it..you are good you caught it early on...we caught it at 6 mo and she wore a helmet for 3 months! and did PT for about 2 months....she hated tummy time and slept A LOT so was therefore on her back a lot..i didnt know any better!

Re: Questions after 3 month ped appt tonight, re: torticollis

I know AngRich's Lucas had this. FM her. She will be helpful.

ETA: In regards to flat head, I dont think daycare is supposed to leave them laying down the entire day. I would speak to them about how much they do tummy time and requestion they do it more often.

Message edited 1/14/2010 11:19:17 PM.

Re: Questions after 3 month ped appt tonight, re: torticollis

Alexa had torticolis, so severe that the nerve was pinched in her neck when she was born and couldn't open her mouth big to breastfeed or even bottle feed. We syringe fed her the first 10 days.

Instead of PT we did cranial sacral therapy. She was 100% better after a few weeks of treatments. We started when she was 3 days old.

Re: Questions after 3 month ped appt tonight, re: torticollis

i dont know anything about torticollis but at ds 2 month appt the dr mentioned he was getting a flat head - which i was aware of! but ds loves sleeping on his back, hates tt, is on the back of his head in a car seat and a swing so hes on the back of his head alot!
i posted about this about a month ago and someone suggested the noggin nest - it helped her dc tremendously!

i got it at target and have been using it since - in the carseat , stroller and swing. Ds ped also suggested to lay ds on his side, so i got him the wedges and been laying him alternating sides.

a month later ds head is round! when we went for our 3 month check up dr wasn not concerned at all and said his head has rounded out.

look into the noggin nest - have daycare use it when they put ur dc in the swing etc.

Re: Questions after 3 month ped appt tonight, re: torticollis

thanks guys! im going to look into that noggin nest!

DH spoke to the daycare people today and apparently they should have been doing tummy time with him and writing it in his book and we havent seen it once. so now they're going to make sure they do it.

Re: Questions after 3 month ped appt tonight, re: torticollis

DS has right torticollis which was diagnosed about the same time as your DC

He has been in physical therapy privately and now through Early Intervention and it seems to be getting better

You need to have him focus/turn to items facing the side he doesnt favor as to attract him

My son also had a flat head and wore a helmet for 4 months to correct it

FM me if you want more info

Re: Questions after 3 month ped appt tonight, re: torticollis

DS was diagnosed with torticollis at 3 months and referred to a PT.

They had us see the PT once a week, and instructed us to do simple stretching exercises at home. After 3 months of therapy, he was able to scale back to 2x a month appointments, then they did a test, he passed, and he graduated PT at around 6 months.

I was nervous, but he is fine and you would never know he had it. We incorporated toys into his exercise "routine" to make it more fun- it was not bad at all. GL and FM if you want more details.

Re: Questions after 3 month ped appt tonight, re: torticollis

Both of my sons had slight flat head. We just went to Tyler's three month appt. and the ped said it looks slightly better.

I've recommended the Noggin Nest to a few mothers on here - that really helped us with Jack.

I feel like I am so limited in the time I have to give Tyler Tummy Time. I can't do it for at least an hour after he eats since he will spit it all up - and then he goes down for a nap - and then wakes to eat. Over and over. It's so hard to squeeze it in.

Re: Questions after 3 month ped appt tonight, re: torticollis

My twin nephews had this, it was very severe though and they have to wear helmets for several months. They get PT as well. The flat heads have gotten MUCH better over the past few months, but I still see them slumping to one side when they sit in their high chairsl. I think if you catch it early enough he will be ok

eta - my nephews had NO tummy time

Message edited 1/15/2010 9:26:20 AM.

Re: Questions after 3 month ped appt tonight, re: torticollis

Gia was diagnosed with torticollis at her 3 month appt too. I started PT with her right away b/c I was still out on maternity leave and could take her. She went 2x a week for a month and it made a huge difference. In the meantime, I contacted early intervention and it's taken 2 months but we have a therapist coming today to evaluate her. Hopefully we'll be able to get someone to come to the house.

Tummy time is a must. We also try to get her to look at things oppposite the way she is use to. When we feed her, we hold her so that she has to turn to look at us. Little things but it helps.

Re: Questions after 3 month ped appt tonight, re: torticollis

good news about his size and his shots!!!!!

about this torticollis thing...my ped didn't notice it or say anything in Luce but I know he definitely favors his right side and is a bit flatter on that side...now I am not sure what to do.

should I schedule another appt with the ped?

would a spine dr. be able to diagnosis this (even if he/she wasn't a ped dr??)

during tummy time at the ped, she was very impressed with his neck control and he didn't swerve to any side, but when he sits he does.

he CAN look towards the left but when his head slumps or anything, it always goes toward the right

Re: Questions after 3 month ped appt tonight, re: torticollis

Posted by Ophelia

good news about his size and his shots!!!!!

about this torticollis thing...my ped didn't notice it or say anything in Luce but I know he definitely favors his right side and is a bit flatter on that side...now I am not sure what to do.

should I schedule another appt with the ped?

would a spine dr. be able to diagnosis this (even if he/she wasn't a ped dr??)

during tummy time at the ped, she was very impressed with his neck control and he didn't swerve to any side, but when he sits he does.

he CAN look towards the left but when his head slumps or anything, it always goes toward the right

Re: Questions after 3 month ped appt tonight, re: torticollis

DD was also diagnosed with torticollis at her 3 month appt. We went to Good Sam for therapy - first 2x a week, then eventually 1x a week. She was released from therapy around her 9 month birthday. Looking back to her newborn pics, it was very obvious, but we didn't see it.