Head deformities a problem for sleeping babies

HEAD DEFORMITIES A PROBLEM FOR SLEEPING BABIES

Big News Network.com
Health Story Archive
(6/05)

For years, parents have been taught the mantra "back to sleep" as a reminder to put babies on their backs in their cribs. The position helps to avoid sudden infant death syndrome, but sometimes causes other problems.

Deformational plagiocephaly is a fancy term for a misshapened head usually caused by infants' heads resting on the same spot. Pediatrician's tell parents to lie their babies on their backs when they sleep to decrease the chance of sudden infant death syndrome, or sids. But many babies tend to find the same comfortable position each night, continually making deformities worse.

National SIDS rates have gone down by more than fourty percent in the last decade, while positional head deformities went up to 1 in 60.

For babies whose heads are misshapen from their sleeping position, the treatment is purely cosmetic. A child's head may look somewhat asymmetrical if not corrected by 24 to 28 months when the skull permanently fuses in place. After that point, changing the shape of the head generally requires surgery.

If noticed early on, parents can often correct the problem by alternating the position of the child's head during sleep, which in most cases helps the head eventually round out to a normal appearance. But there are special helmets and pillows available that could also help. However, they can be expensive and need to be adjusted. Only some insurance companies cover the costs of this kind of treatment.