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Help for babies with 'flat head'

A new not-for-profit organisation, Headstart, has been launched to help babies with a condition known as plagiocephaly, a flattened area at the back of the head.

Plagiocephaly is on the increase partly due to the 'back to sleep' campaign which encourages parents to put their babies to sleep on their backs.

Whilst the campaign has dramatically reduced the number of cot deaths, it has inadvertently increased the number of children suffering from misshapen heads.

Now Headstart has launched a website to spread the word about plagiocephaly to other parents and make them aware that helmet therapy is available to treat the condition.

Babies with plagiocephaly can be treated with a non-invasive helmet which is worn for 23 hours a day for up to six months.

Treatment should ideally start within the first 12 months of the baby's life - the earlier the better - to take advantage of the period when the skull is still changing shape and growing quickly.

Each helmet is specifically tailored to the contours of the baby's head and channels growth to the areas which need to 'round out'.

The founders of Headstart, Philip Saich and Karen Laker noticed that their baby son Ben was developing an odd head shape when he was just three months and, despite being reassured by their GP that this was quite normal and that it would rectify itself as Ben's head grew, remained concerned.

They discovered helmet therapy by chance but after four and a half months' of treatment their son's head misalignment will be 100 per cent corrected.

Helmet therapy is commonplace in the USA but their are only two specialists treating plagiocephaly in the UK.

Most NHS paediatricians are dubious about the need to use helmets - the conventional medical view is that it doesn't much matter if a baby's head is slightly misshapen, as hair will cover up the problem and there are no long-term medical implications.

Orthotist Stephen Mottram, who works for the US company Medistox, is one of the specialists treating plagiocephaly in the UK.

He says, "Where a baby seems to be developing plagiocephaly, my first suggestion would be to move the baby so he isn't always sleeping with his head to the same side."

If these measures do not help, further advice for concerned parents is limited due to many NHS professionals dismissing plagiocephaly as a cosmetic condition.

However, Dr Mottram says that the condition could cause dental and jaw problems, increased migraines, and psychological problems associated with bullying at school.

He says, "Doctors in the UK say there isn't enough published evidence that the helmets work or that the treatment is necessary.

"But our results suggest that the helmets can make a huge difference - provided they're available at the right time in the baby's life."

The treatment is unavailable on the NHS and costs between £1,200 and £1,500 plus VAT. The Saiches are disappointed that the NHS doesn't offer more to parents concerned about their babies' head shape.

Headstart aims to offer help and advice to parents who are concerned and hope in the longer-term goal to be able to offer subsidised helmets to parents of babies with the condition.

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