Has anyone's infant had to wear a Pavlik Harness for hip dysplasia? (Long story, with questions at the end) UPDATED 8/7/12

Ugh, what a day! At DD's 1-month checkup, the ped felt a "clicking" and looseness in her left hip and referred her for a ultrasound. We first had to see the orthopedist, who felt abnormalities in her left and right hips and thought that the left was likely dislocated. She put DD in a harness to stabilize her hips and said that she would have to wear it 24/7 for 6 weeks, except for baths, then sent us to Winthrop for the ultrasound. I was beside myself and so worried for my little girl.

We went to Winthrop, and it turns out the ultrasound results were totally normal! DH and I were so relieved. They told us that the orthopedist wanted to see us again back at her office, and to take the harness off. YAY! We went back to the office expecting to have this whole ordeal behind us.

We met with the doctor right away. She had just spoken with our pediatrician, and they decided that since they both felt sliding in DD's hip, that they were going to be "uber-cautious" and have her wear the harness for 2 weeks. I was disappointed, because IMO, if the test results were normal, why torture my child with this (in reality, it tortures me more than her)? I've looked online a bit, and it seems that the rates of false negatives for ultrasound for hip dysplasia are very low, and that at times some hip clicking can be normal. I really don't want DD to have to wear this unnecessarily, even if just for 2 weeks...

All that said, I have a call into my pediatrician to discuss this further with him, but if DD does continue to wear this for 2 weeks, does anyone have any experience with it? My main concerns are how to dress her comfortably...I'm guessing onesies are easiest for diaper changes, and she can wear gowns over the harness at night. We aren't allowed to swaddle her anymore, so I'm worried about how she is going to sleep in her bassinet and crib (we were planning on transitioning starting next week). Does anyone have any suggestions or tips on how to make this as easy as possible for our baby and for us? Thanks so much!

If anyone's interested, here's what the harness looks like, but my DD does not look quite as happy about it!



ETA: I spoke with my pediatrician, and he supported the orthopedist's decision to have Alana wear the harness for two weeks, because the ortho had felt such clear sliding in the joint. He said that it can't hurt her at all, it's just more of an inconvenience, and that it's better than ending up with major problems down the road. So, we'll go along with it and hopefully after the two weeks she'll be done with it and we can put this behind us.

UPDATE 8/7/12: Well, we went for a second opinion after getting some feedback about the original ortho from two very helpful LIFers. The new ortho did not feel any problems with DD's hip, and did another sono, and everything was absolutely fine. So, no more harness for Alana! Now, if we can just get her to stop screaming during every bottle....

Message edited 8/7/2012 7:44:03 PM.

Re: Has anyone's infant had to wear a Pavlik Harness for hip dysplasia? (Long story, with questions at the end)

No experience but wanted to send you Have you thought about getting another opinion?

Re: Has anyone's infant had to wear a Pavlik Harness for hip dysplasia? (Long story, with questions at the end)

Posted by apwmjc

No experience but wanted to send you Have you thought about getting another opinion?

Re: Has anyone's infant had to wear a Pavlik Harness for hip dysplasia? (Long story, with questions at the end)

My sister just had to go through this with her daughter. She has mild hip dysplasia due to being breech. She had to wear the harness 23 hours a day 7 days a week for 4 weeks. The baby actually slept better with it on. It did not bother her at all. After the 4 weeks she got the ok to leave it off.

Re: Has anyone's infant had to wear a Pavlik Harness for hip dysplasia? (Long story, with questions at the end)

I'm sure they are just erring on the side of caution for your dd. ask your ped for a second opinion.

Re: Has anyone's infant had to wear a Pavlik Harness for hip dysplasia? (Long story, with questions at the end)

No personal experience but I have a friend whose DD had to wear one for several months. I don't know the specifics but she went through a lot. If you ever need to talk I can put you in touch with her. IMO its worth a second opinion though. Good luck! Your DD is precious!

Has anyone's infant had to wear a Pavlik Harness for hip dysplasia? (Long story, with questions at the end)

My daughter had to wear one for 7 weeks, starting when she was 2 weeks old. I have to admit it was tough but I think it was harder for me than my daughter. She had to wear it 20 hours a day, 7 days a week. She got used to it but it was harder for her when you first put it on after she had a break. My recomendation is to put long socks on her so she doesn't get bothered by the velcro, and to also put a band-aid anywhere that the velcro is exposed so it doesn't scatch her. Also, I put a onesie on her first with the socks, then the harness. Since its the summertime you should be fine with that during the day, and then at night I would put a larger pajama over. I did one size bigger which seemed to be fine over the harness. My DD was ok without being swaddled, I was worried about this at first too but she got used to it. The 2 weeks will go fast, and its better to be cautious with it. My DD is 5 months old now and she her hips are completely fine now.

Re: Has anyone's infant had to wear a Pavlik Harness for hip dysplasia? (Long story, with questions at the end)

My daughter had clicky hips at birth, but we didn't need a harness. I know six weeks seems like a long time, but in the long run its a goods idea for her to wear it. Its hard, but she will get used to it. Good luck!

Re: Has anyone's infant had to wear a Pavlik Harness for hip dysplasia? (Long story, with questions at the end)

Dr David Godfried is an amazing ortho - he corrected my daughter's club foot when she was born and was great and everyone says what a wonderful job he did. We now see someone else in the city for follow-up due to insurance reasons - David Scher at Hosp for Special Surgery - also wonderful. Feel free to contact me for any ortho recos as we have run the course and know a few

Has anyone's infant had to wear a Pavlik Harness for hip dysplasia? (Long story, with questions at the end)

no personal experience but my old boss' daughter had the dislocated hip issue. they tested Em for it because she was breech and breech babies tend to have issues with this more often but she ended up OK. my boss' kid had to have surgery and be in a body cast for a few weeks to fix the issue, she was maybe 6m old. so that being said if they are being cautious and using the harness for 2 weeks in order to correct it and avoid surgery and a body cast, i would probably be OK with it. however i prob would also get another opinion just to be sure since it sounds like everyone involve were just a little bit unsure. so other opinions cant hurt.

Message edited 7/31/2012 9:49:46 PM.

Re: Has anyone's infant had to wear a Pavlik Harness for hip dysplasia? (Long story, with questions at the end)

My DD wore that harness for 6 weeks.

I was so sad and worried and also thought it looked so tortuous.

Honestly, it was nothing. She did fine in it. We became pros at changing diapers. THe worst thing about was that her wardrobe was limited for those weeks. I mostly kept her in one piece outfits with snaps that could be worn over the harness.

If they are saying they want to put her in it to be cautious, I would do it. I would rather her wear the thing for a few weeks then deal with the potential of missing it (could develop a limp, misaligned hips, etc).

I promise you although it seems horrible, the time will fly and it she will be absolutely fine in it!

Re: Has anyone's infant had to wear a Pavlik Harness for hip dysplasia? (Long story, with questions at the end)

I actually had to wear one way back when. Back then it was completely casted first then braced. My kids were checked as soon as they were born and they were good. The harness does not hurt the baby... it looks worse than it is.

Re: Has anyone's infant had to wear a Pavlik Harness for hip dysplasia? (Long story, with questions at the end)

DD had to wear one for about 3 months or so. I felt the same way as you but soon realized that she wasn't phased by it at all. It bothered me more seeing her in it then it actually bothered her being in it. After the first week or so I was used to it on her. The only issue we came across was when it came to sleeping...she didn't like sleeping on her back with her legs up. So we put her on her stomach to sleep and she was fine. Only reason why it was an issue was because she was still very little and probably shouldn't have been sleeping on her stomach so I had to get the Angelcare monitor to ease my mind.

Any other specific questions feel free to ask me!

Re: Has anyone's infant had to wear a Pavlik Harness for hip dysplasia? (Long story, with questions at the end)

We went through the same thing. however, the orthopedist would not see us until we had the ultrasound first. We had two done which were both fine. They do say some clicking is normal. Was the baby breech? my doctor said that is the most common cause of it. My dd is now 21mths and fine. But its better to be safe than sorry.

Re: Has anyone's infant had to wear a Pavlik Harness for hip dysplasia? (Long story, with questions at the end)

I have so much experience it's not even funny! BOTH of my DD's had hip dysplasia! The first because she was breech and the 2nd b/c it is extremely common in sisters! DD #1 wore it for 8 weeks 20/7 and DD #2 wore it for 6 weeks 20/7. DD #2 was a nightmare with the ortho. She told us her hip was dislocated, wanted her to wear the harness 24/7 for months, talked about possible surgery. Scared the crap out of us. Long story short, we went for a 2nd opinion with the GOD of ortho...Dr. Ronald Lewis in Huntington. He does the sono's in the office, which I think makes a HUGE difference. The first ortho sent us to Winthrop and she onlye read the results. I think it is very different when the doctor themselves actually performs the sono. I would definitely go for a 2nd opinion. Please FM me if you want. I am more than happy to chat with you about it having gone through it twice!

Has anyone's infant had to wear a Pavlik Harness for hip dysplasia? (Long story, with questions at the end)

DD has it also. She got the harness at 3 days old and wore it full time for 12 weeks. She's now wearing it just at night for 6 more weeks. It's hard at first, just to see hem in it, but once we got used to it, it really wasn't a big deal. It never bothered DD at all.

We dress her in onesies or cute rompers. I tried dresses over it but it just looked weird. We also kept a bib on to keep the harness clean and toddler socks or cute legwarmers with just her toes sticking out. At night we take off the bib and put her in a sleep sack.


i'm sure your two weeks will go by super fast. If you want a second opinion, I would agree with pp about getting an ortho that will do the ultrasound themselves. Feel free to fm me if you want to chat or need any tips. Good luck to you and your DD!

Re: Has anyone's infant had to wear a Pavlik Harness for hip dysplasia? (Long story, with questions at the end)

Posted by annienyc

Dr David Godfried is an amazing ortho - he corrected my daughter's club foot when she was born and was great and everyone says what a wonderful job he did. We now see someone else in the city for follow-up due to insurance reasons - David Scher at Hosp for Special Surgery - also wonderful. Feel free to contact me for any ortho recos as we have run the course and know a few

Re: Has anyone's infant had to wear a Pavlik Harness for hip dysplasia? (Long story, with questions at the end)

While I have no experience with it with my DD's, I myself have it and unfortunately it was never caught and corrected (a lateral shift with no visible cues for the doctor to have caught and no click developed until I was older). Because it was never caught and corrected, my hip comes out of its socket (worst was during both pregnancies) and the only way to correct it is to have a hip replacement. When I got preg with my 2nd I was told by my ortho that if I was thinking about going for a 3rd that I should have the replacement done at least 2 years before (to allow for proper healing and building the muscles around) having the next. I know DH and I are done having children, but just the thought of having a hip replacement at the age of 36 to me is crazy.

Not to mention the pain I have from arthritis in my knee and back because of the compensating my body naturally developed.

So even if your DD may be uncomfortable or even if it is possible that its totally unnecessary....better to be cautious now and save her the possible repercussions down the road.
JMO though.....

Good luck and hugs to you and the little one....

Re: Has anyone's infant had to wear a Pavlik Harness for hip dysplasia? (Long story, with questions at the end)

sending you an FM

Message edited 8/1/2012 4:28:55 PM.

Re: Has anyone's infant had to wear a Pavlik Harness for hip dysplasia? (Long story, with questions at the end) UPDATED 8/7/12

bumping with update. Thanks for all of your support!

Re: Has anyone's infant had to wear a Pavlik Harness for hip dysplasia? (Long story, with questions at the end) UPDATED 8/7/12

OMG Jackie so happppy to hear about Alana!!!!!! so glad you got that second opinion and that everything is fine!!

Re: Has anyone's infant had to wear a Pavlik Harness for hip dysplasia? (Long story, with questions at the end) UPDATED 8/7/12

Great news!

Has anyone's infant had to wear a Pavlik Harness for hip dysplasia? (Long story, with questions at the end) UPDATED 8/7/12

im so happy all is well! they throw ultrasounds around like candy these days...i had to get one for reagan because her "fat roll was uneven on her leg" i mean ive never heard of something so ridiculous. all was fine but bottom line is that these doctors are way too cautious. im so gald she is ok!