One topic that is of interest to PBO Group staff is Developmental Plagiocephaly. Developmental Plagiocephaly, which has been defined by Dulcey Lima as an asymmetry in the shape, cranial vault or height of the baby’s skull or a disproportionate relationship of the width to the length of the skull, with accompanying abornal features, is one that has until recently been considered a purely aesthetic issue, one that an infant will eventually grow out of. However, recent studies have shown that children diagnosed with Developmental Plagiocephaly are at risk for developing delays in cognition, language, and adaptive behaviours. Children born with the skull deformity are lacking the same psychomotor and mental skills as compared to children who were not diagnosed. Due to the increasing awareness of the detrimental effects of Developmental Plagiocephaly on infants in the first six months of their life, some new treatment options have started being explored by our staff. One of those treatment options is helmet therapy. Helmet therapy is essentially a skull molding process that can be used to correct the shape of the infant’s skull. These helmets are in essence an orthotic that the infant would wear until their skull begins to reshape. This treatment option is being widely explored by the staff at Niagara Prosthetics & Orthotics and we thought this would be interesting information to share.
Here is a link to an interesting article that explains Developmental Plagiocephaly in full:
http://www.acpoc.org/library/2007_03_005.asp
