Will a Flat Infant Head Correct Itself?

It usually will correct itself with lots of tummy time and not too much time on his back, but you will still want to mention it to his doctor. If it is too bad or doesn't start to correct itself, they will do something about it (I think it involves a helmet). It isn't good for the head to be too misshapen, but it is totally normal to have some flatness until they start rolling over.

My niece had a distorted head from the way she was in the womb and my sister started taking her to a chiropractor and eventually a physical thereapist. Her head went back to a round and even state in a fairly short amount of time. She is so glad that she got her treated while she was so young (started around 3-4 months old). She is now almost 5 and you would never know her face was uneven when she was a newborn!

my son's head was flatter on one side and I was worried that it would alway be like that and now he is 11 months old and it looks fine. He does have lots of hair though. We can not tell that it was flat at one time. I wouldn't worry about it unless it gets worse and then just go back to the dr.

Good Luck and good for you for going to the dr and getting a second opinion when you felt if necessary.

oh honey don't worry. lots of babies go through this. you might also notice your baby will have a bald spot on the back of the head. it's because they are not old enough yet to do much but lay on their backs. give your baby lots of tummy time, it will encourage muscle development as well as start to get rid of that pesky flat spot. i won't tell you to talk to your pediatrician because you have already said you did. if your baby's dr. is not worried, don't give it another thought. (my neice had a SEVERELY flat head, i think because my sister in law never really did much with her but let her lay around on the floor a lot - it was so bad we were worried it might be a problem, and her dr. actually was taking measurements and stuff to track it, but it worked itself out fine and now at 3 she is beautiful and perfect and you'd never know she had a flat head as a baby!)

I'm so glad that you'v noticed this! I'd go see someone who specialized in infant cranio-sacral therapy. If your baby is acting like a healthy baby I wouldn't worry too much, but I would still go see someone who does this therapy. My baby had it done & it helped his cognitive development after a traumatic birth. The best therapist that I know of in Portland is Carol Grey http://www.carolgray.com/carolgray/About_Carol_Gray.html , well worth it.

Although a cranial deformity is rare, the flatness usually goes away once the baby figures out how to roll over on it's own and stops sleeping on it's stomach so much. Babies heads are easily shapened remember those cone heads from a vaginal birth?! It will probably reshape back to the nice round head it once was. My baby too had a flat head and she was missing all the hair because she just rubbed her head back and forth a lot. She's now 16months old and her head is fine and all her hair grew back.

find a cranial/sacral practitioner www.upledger.com
R. G

Most babies these days have flat heads b/c of back sleeping on firm surfaces. If the ped says it's minor then it's probably typical. Look at around at other babies and kids, you'll notice a lot of it. The severe cases are waaaayyyy severe, like completely in line with their back.
Wearing baby in a carrier is a great way to keep them off the back of their heads, too, without making them do tummy time.
Personally, it's one of many reasons my kids were not back sleepers. In the "old days" they didn't have this problem because babies weren't left on their backs on a firm crib mattress. No miracle about it fixing itself.

I remember one of my brothers having a flat head in the back, the ped saying it would correct its self and that brother, who is nearly bald now has a nice rounded head. The skull continues to grow and doesn't become solid bone until many years after birth. Don't worry about it.

I never had this problem because I constantly rotated my babies. But I saw it very prominently in my nieces and nephews because everyone was saying babies need to sleep on their backs for safety reasons. First thing I want to say is trust your instincts. You are the mama, if you are concerned keep pushing your pediatrician or seek other professional advice. I also agree with those saying it's better to do something now rather than later. When I read your question I thought of a story. When my father was born his head was misshaped, actually caved in, because of the birthing process. His mother consistently massaged his head and it corrected itself. He wears his hair really short (shaved) now and you'd never know he had any issues as a baby. Besides rubbing your baby's head is just another loving way you can touch your baby.

In my experience, no.

If the pediatrician's aren't worried about brain development, then it's simply a cosmetic issue and nothing to worry about or try to correct. If your ped is worried about brain development, then they may talk to you about a corrective helmet.

Hi Jennifer,
As an OT and mama of two once-had-flat-head babies...

My MIL made a big deal to me about the helmets; I've heard the whole cranio-sacral argument...

What did our parents do in the "old days???" They left it alone, and the kids' heads rounded out... *miracle.* (lol)

Your baby is (and will be) beautiful!
t

No, this is not temporary. You need to make sure that your baby gets tummy time every day. Our son had the same condition - it's called plagiocephaly. It was combined with torticollis - a shortening of one side of the neck muscles. The prescription from our physical therapist was tummy time. You can use one of the large excercise balls if your baby doesn't love being face down on a mat. And you only need to do it for a few minutes a few times a day. Yes, hair will cover it, but it won't round out on it's own.

In general, yes...babies have very soft and moldable skulls and they will reform over time as the brain grows and the skeletal structure solidifies. That being said, though, since my own babies were born there has been a lot of fear implanted in mothers about placing babies on their stomachs for any reason, including sleep (they'll suffocate!!!! OMG!!!!---guess what? they don't.), and we are told by baby stuff manufacturers, who stand to gain all kinds of profits by our purchases, and corporate controlled media, who stand to get us all back in the workplace without paying for parenting time, that we should all stick our babies in plastic carrying boxes, swings, bouncers, and any number of expensive items to keep from "having" to hold them, cuddle them, spend time with them while they explore on the floor, or generally pay any attention to them at all. Babies did not evolve to lay on their backs all the time. Human mothers did not evolve to give birth and go back to work within a few weeks at a desk job. Rather, we all evolved to be in rather constant physical contact and movement with our babies in the first years, and that is the best way to create a normally developed body and mind.

It really depends on how flat it is. Sometimes babies have to wear helmets so that it can correct itself, however most babies get a little bit of a flat head and once they start sitting up then it starts to round out. If your Dr said it was minor then I wouldn't worry about it. If you are truely concerned then get a 2nd opinion from another pediatritian.

Jennifer - I would suggest you push your pediatrician for a referral to a specialist pediatric physical therapist or get in toiuch privately with one of us moms (I am one) who has seen one and can suggest easy rolling exercises that make it like play time to smooth out the roundness. I wouldn't follow the advice of "if your pediatrician isn't bothered, then don't be". I had 2 pedicatricians who thought it was okay that my child's plates were crossing due to having torticollis (problems with the neck muscles) and he couldn't turn his head one direction so he didn't stay on that side long. I finally went to another one who actually listened - made my regular pediatrician mad but it was my son not his.
I would definitely ask for the referral, especially if your insurance covers it. With physical therapy - nothing painful for the child - you can skip all the headbands and certainly won't need a helmet if you catch it early.
A lot of times it will correct itself in the tummy time and massage of the head but I thougth the more I knew to help him, the better off we would both be. My son's head still has some misshape to it but is SO much better than I could have done on my own.
Good Luck.

It definitely depends on the severity. But my daughter had that flat head and once she started rolling over more it eventually went away.

The longer you wait the longer correction will take, so ask for a referral and don't take no for an answer. Having a flat head can also cause other problems with their range of motion that may need physical therapy. Again, the sooner you take action, the less time it will take to correct any problems and prevent further problems. It's not life or death which is why some Dr.s are reluctant to give out referrals, but it can cause developmental delays and hey we want what's best for our kids. So don't settle for less. Your baby is young enough that there are probably no big issues yet, but talking to specialist and learning how to prevent will be very helpful. Hope you find the answers you need.

We went through the same w/ our little boy. Our pediatrician at the time insisted that the head will get better w/ time and now action was required from our part. Well, it did not get better AT ALL. I read somewhere that the first 5-6 weeks when the babies head is the softest the flatheadness can occur, ecpesially if the babies neck is stiff on one side (torticollis). Anyway, we went to a Childrens specialist here at Fairfax, VA and got a second opinion when our son was about 11 months. The doctor advised that it will change little on its own but it will change more w/ a head ban. We made an appintment the next week and little over a month he was wearing his ban. He wore this ban about 4 months and the changes were amazing. We probably could have benefitted from a second ban but the price was too much (about $4000 each ban) to do another treatment when insurance doed not cover these things when only done for cosmetic reasons. I have met people after the fact and they had done same treatments when their babies were 3-6 months, and their babies heads turned up perfect. I am gladd we did this, I just wish we would have done it MUCH earlier and not listeded our incompetent doctor. I'm sorry for all these typos (Writing from blackberry) but when I saw your note I had to respond right away. I whole heartetly recomend a head band treatment and also neck exercises if the baby has a stiff neck and prefers one side more than the other. None of the neck pillows or sleeping positioners worked for us at all. Good Luck!

Hi, Jennifer! You've received good advice-just thought I would share my story. My son's head became slightly flattened on one side because he apparently liked to turn his head in the same direction when he slept. Our pediatrician advised us to simply prop him on his other side with a rolled up receiving blanket to keep him on his other side as much as possible. It worked out great and it did correct itself without the use of a helmet.

Depending on how severe your child's situation is, his head will probably correct itself! Best of luck.

Depending on the severity it may not get better on its own. If you are concerned push the doctor harder. Get a referral to a specialist. I had a flat headed baby, due to weeks in a bed at the NICU. We were lucky because we caught it early enough that physical therapy was able to correct the issue. If you wait too long or it gets too bad they sometimes put helmets on the babies. Send me a personal email if you want more info. It been several years since we have gone through this but I am experienced with this issue. :)

It is definitely possible for your child's head to change. I don't know if will get back to it's "original" shape, but you can see improvements.

We ended up doing helmet threrapy with my son. (He had torticolis and only turned his head to the right and ended up with a flat spot on the right backside of his head). I mentioned it to my pediatrician at 2 months and again at 3 months. We did physical therapy for the torticolis and he was assessed by a cranial facial doctor at Seattle Children's. Despite doing well with physical therapy and my efforts to keep him off of his back, we didn't see enough of an improvement.

Keep doing what you are doing. If you don't see improvement in another month or two call your doctor and ask for referral to get assessed by a cranial facial doctor. They will measure your child's and classify the severity of issue. The cranial facial doctors will also be able to give you clear guidance about what amount of change you can expect to see without pursuing helmet therapy.

My daughter had a flat head on one side, because I didn't realize I should have been turning the direction she slept in her crib every few nights. She would naturally look toward the room, and developed a flatter spot on that side of her little head. After my son was born, I turned him and his head was much more symmetrical, but still flat, I have to say. Now they are both totally fine with beautiful, round heads. I wouldn't worry about it, but I would get a bumbo chair or jumperoo or slings and other things that you can do for activities that aren't laying down.

Hi--

Of course, each case is different, but my brother was adopted around 5 months of age. He had a very flat head. He had been in foster care with a whole bunch of kids and the foster care mother said he slept a lot in the crib. When he became more mobile, that all disappeared. I would check back in with your doctor and monitor this, but my guess is that this will dissipate soon.

Best to you!

sometimes it does, a lot of times it doesn't. i didn't want to take the chance so we had our dd fitted for a headband. she wore it for 3 months. yes it was difficult with all the adjustments and all but so worth it.
the thing about a flat head is if you're going to do anything about it you only have until the first birthday. then nothing will help correct it. your call on this one.

Not as long as you keep the baby on it's back and in a seat 24x7. Start putting your baby on his tummy while he's playing on the floor (with blanket or map down). This will give him an opportunity to develop upper body strength, even at 3 months of age. Some babies are in need of a helmet that they wear that will help to re-shape their skulls. Sleeping a baby on their side, propped by a sleeping wedge, instead flat on their backs will help their head shape as well. Helping them sit up right without laying their head back, by using a large bucky pillow, also helps them develop stronger back and neck muscles. It all comes with development, but their are things that you can do to prevent futher flatness.

It really depends on the severity. This is something you definitely need to discuss with the baby's doc. If it is severe enough they may recommend intervention.

My daughter, who is 13 years old now had a really flat head, due to her sleeping on her back, sitting in a swing and a bouncy seat when she was around 4 months. It was so flat that our pediatrician gave me a month to try to keep her on her stomach and see if her head would go back to normal. If it didn't, she was going to have to wear a helmet of some kind. In that month I did everything to keep her head off surfaces and it worked!

I would try as much Tummy Time as possible right now, in addition to avoiding bouncers and strollers (whenever possible). For tips on how to incorporate TT into your day, check out this helpful site from Pathways Awareness: http://bit.ly/8IhuuF. You could also schedule an evaluation with a pediatric physical therapist to get their opinion. To pursue an evaluation, here is a listing of each state’s Early Intervention program: http://bit.ly/clLtWT. Click on the link for your state (“Select a State”)and look for the Birth-3 program, usually an 800#. Unfortunately, sometimes a helmet is required to fix that flat spot and is not usually covered by insurance.

It will correct it before your baby is 1 year old! My babies had the same problem. Not now! :)

Chances are yes, though it depends on the severity. I would bring it up with your doctor or have it checked by an orthopedist just to be sure(I'm a Pediatric Physical Therapist). If your child needs a cranial reshaping orthosis there is a window of time in which it is most effective(around 4-5 months). These websites might be helpful: www.cranialtech.com and www.plagiocephaly.info