6 Month Old Still Has a Flat Head from Sleeping on His Back

tell the dr. so he can recommend a specialist, they will make a helmet to fit his head so it will take shape while his bones are still tender and soft. He will have to wear it 24-7.

H.

This should round out now that he is sitting up.

He can now sleep on his tummy. Once infants are past 4 months, they are past worrying about SIDS.

Make sure he also gets lots of tummy time so he can start pushing up. Place toys just out side of his reach some of the time so that he will want to crawl.

My 10 months son had a flat head on one side (plagiocephaly)from sleeping on his back as he prefer on side than other. It started showing since he's 2 weeks old. I told his pediatrician and she told me to try to rotate his position but that doesn't work. On his 6 months check up, his pediatrician send us to the "helmet guy" to check if he is the candidate. FYI, for the helmet / cranial band to work effectively it should be used before infant reach 1 year but many recommend at 6 months old for at least 3 month at 23 hours a day ( that is because grow sprout are very intensive during 6 - 9 month ). The helmet guy told me that my son need the cranial band and it cost $1800 (insurance won't cover it is it is consider cosmetic). I was so scared when he told me that failure to provide him with band will result him being deform. After doing an extensive research, i decided to get a second opinion from a surgeon working at Texas Children Hospital. By the time i saw the surgeon, my son already 8 months and his head is getting rounder by day. The surgeon told me that my son do not need the band and his head is round by itself because he spend time on his tummy and sleep on his tummy at night too (on his own). Now at 10 months his head shape are much better but not perfectly round (nobodys are) and it should improve by day as he still growing. So my 2 cents opinion is, get a 2nd opinion from any research children hospital at your area (they are more neautral on thier advise) and meanwhile get your little guy to spend more time off his back by limiting car seat, stroller as such. E-mail me if you need more info on this "plagiocephaly". Good luck

Hi L.,

My heart goes out to you...I went through the same situation with my son. When my son was born- they said he was in the birth canal too long, and he also had tortocolis which is tightening of the muscles in the neck -he favored one side. My pedi told me this at his 2 month check-up. All of this along with me putting him on his back to sleep (I do not regret putting him on his back to sleep by the way) caused him to have a flat spot on his right side. Our pedi advised that we take him to Orthoamerica when he was 6 months old and was told he had "severe plagiobrachy" and needed a starband (helmet). We couldn't help but feel we were being "sold" to, and we decided to wait and see if it would get better as you said - he was sitting up and now sleeping on his stomach (on his own).

Then at his nine month check up I was told that it looked like it had gotten worse- and my pedi said that she wished we would have gotten the band. I went home in tears- discussed it with my husband and we knew what we had to do. We set another appt with Orthoamerica- he had gotten worse, and on August 6th he got his starband.

He is now 15 months and is in his last month wearing the band. He has made tremendous progress- the other thing is his ears were misaligned which really bothered me. Our insurance would not cover it- so it was all out of pocket. It sounds to me as if your son has Brachiocephaly (sp). which is the flattening of the back of the head.

Since your son is 6 months old- his head is still very soft and could benefit greatly from a helmet. Some babies his age may only have to wear it for 12 weeks! My son will have worn his for 6months when he is through but he was 10 months when he got his band. He didn't mind it at all believe it or not.

The question is- are you ok with the thought that it may not get better 100% If so then you could wait it out. If not you are in a good position to get full correction with a helmet.

There is a wonderful yahoo group to discuss and support parents faced with this issue. Message me and I would be happy to share.

I hope I have been helpful. I know how hard it is to be going through this. God Bless you and your little one!

Yes it will be fine. My son has a very falt head. He was always on his back. He will be a year in a few days. His head is still a little flat but it is taking shape. His father and Grandfather both have flat heads so it might be a bit heritertary (sp) too! It has changed alot over the last few months. Dont worry espically if the pedi says everything is ok.

we used a helmet from 7 months to 10 months. the jey is to cath the head in a growth spurt. I'd look into a helmet, that is my opinion. I am not sure how rubbing the head can help the growth of bone, clinically. Sorry, I am speed reading and typing. If it is a girl you can more easily hide it in the future. Boys are harder with short hair. I have a whopper of a story, but no time to write it. If you choose to go the helmet route, email. You can also search the net for plagiocephaly. Good luck, the decision is a tough.

I also had the same problem with my son. My pediatrician thought it would be okay in time. It bothered me more than her and I kept asking her at each DR visit. She referred us to a specialist, we went and specialist said he was okay and would not need the helmet. My son is now 5 and he still has a flat spot. Its not as bad as before he turned 1 but when I shampoo his hair, I still feel it. His hair does hide it.

He's only 6 months old. It doesn't round out overnight, but gradually. The skull bones do not fuse for some time yet.

My daughter was sent to a specialist about a helmet. But hers wasn't just flat on the back it was flat on one side and it looked really wonky. You may just ask your doctor to recommend someone. I have seen plenty of kids who did not grow out of it, so I'm not sure how your doctor can be so sure.

My son was born with plagiocephaly and torticollis from his position in utero. The left side of his forehead was "sunken" in from my rib cage. The doctor spotted it at two months. His ears were about an inch misaligned. I was astounded that I didn't recognize it. Once she pointed it out, it was soooo obvious to me. She gave me exercises to do and instructions about positioning. I did consult a PT and helmet person and he did not require a helmet. He's three now, and you can still tell a little bit if you know to look for it. I sometimes wonder how it would be if we would have gotten a helmet, but it's slight enough that he wouldn't be him without it and it's part of his personality. His eyes and ears are aligned just fine now.

I noticed over the Christmas holidays my nephew on my husband's side (now about 11) had a flat head in the back. I wondered how he looked as a baby. It was the first time I had noticed it. I have also seen other children at three whose head was still flat in the back.

I was very diligent and anal with my son's exercises and positioning and am so grateful things turned out the way they did. If you don't start seeing some resolution soon, I'd at least consult with the helmet people and get another opinion.

Hi L.,we had the same thing! Our son's head is still a little flat and he is 6 1/2 yrs. old. They make head shaping gear,ask your Doc. Good Luck!

My daughter was the same way. Once she was sitting up and crawling (6-7 months), it rounded out on it's own...no helmet needed. My youngest daughter is almost 8 months and her head was also flat for a while, but is rounding out nicely. Don't worry, your Dr is correct.

Hi L., I know a family that used the helmet for their son because his head was mishaped. He is 14 months now and has a beautifully shaped head. If the head is severly flat and you have the money now is the time to invest in the helmet. If you don't have the money you might want to wait a month or two more to see if it starts to correct on its own. Don't wait too long though.

I was always told to rub their heads in a circular motions when feeding or cuddling so that the head would round out. Don't push down just gently rub almost like you were shampooing.