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Are you giving your baby flat head syndrome?
Last updated at 23:22pm on 17.02.07
Worried mother: Jennifer Bone with her son Oliver
Britain is facing an increasing number of babies with flattened skulls, a leading medical expert has warned.
Almost half of infants develop a flat patch to the back or side of their head, according to the latest published research.
And the reason is thought to be the highly successful campaign to prevent cot deaths by putting babies to sleep on their backs.
• Click here for safe sleeping tips for your baby
But treatment of the condition, flat head syndrome or positional plagiocephaly, has led to a major split in the medical profession.
While some experts claim it can cause medical problems, including muscular and visual difficulties, others say it is purely cosmetic and will correct itself without intervention.
Philip Owen, a paediatric cranial osteopath from Manchester, who has treated thousands of children with the syndrome over the past 25 years, fears the number of babies developing symptoms is growing significantly.
He said: "Four out of five babies who come to me have misshapen heads and in 30 per cent of those cases the problem is moderate or severe.
"In future I think we will see more cases. It is very sad."
But Dr Martin Ward Platt, a consultant paediatrician at Newcastle's Royal Victoria Infirmary, says parents have nothing to worry about.
"It is extremely common for babies to have flat patches on their heads and it always has been," he said.
"It is part of the normal condition because babies are born with very large brains.
"This is another example of the tendency to create medical problems out of normality. It is not a problem."
Jennifer Bone, 28, from Great Budworth, Cheshire, decided to have her son Oliver fitted with a helmet when he was seven months old after his head became very flat on the right side.
Although she saw some improvements with the helmet, Oliver started to suffer from pressure sores. So she tried a special mattress, designed by Mr Owen to prevent flat head syndrome, which has a dip in it for the baby's head so it doesn't flop to one side.
She said: "Oliver is nearly two now and his head shape has improved significantly, although it is not perfect.
"I just wish we had been told about this right from day one. If we had, we wouldn't be trying to correct it now."
The latest research was based on American infants. It found that up to 48 per cent of babies under the age of one developed the deformity.
Experts have stressed the importance of following the Back To Sleep campaign - launched in the Nineties - as the number of cases in which babies died has dropped by 50 per cent in a year.
Reader views (18)
Look at the London Orthotics Clinic website. They are an excellent source of information and advice for worried parents.
- Angie, Hampshire
can somone please tell me were i can get a helmet from, can you get them from the usa as the only ones i have seen in the uk cost £2000, i have twins and both have flat heads so as you can see the cost is gunna be big.
- Paula Haskins, england
when i was pregnant with my 1st child i knew a couple of babies with flat heads so i have always been very awhere of this problem. i have always put my children to sleep on their backs as adviced, but have made sure that they don't sleep with their heads always on the same side and when in their car seat would always try and make sure if they favoured sleeping with their heads to one poticular side i would turn them to the other side even using a muslin blanket to help to do this.... i now have 3 children my youngest only 3 months, so far my 2 older childrens heads are a lovely shape. I wish health visitors warn mothers right from the start about this condition and as i have found you can still put your babies to sleep on their backs but just make sure they don't sleep with their head constantly in the same position!!!!
- J Murrell, rochester kent
<i>Those formula fed babies can't lift their heads as well as breastfed kids can - formula fed kids gain weight too fast. So if they can't lift their heads, they stay easily in the same position. I've never heard of a breastfed baby getting a flat head.</i>
You have now. Our child has a flattened head, and has been exclusively breast fed. She is 50th percentile in weight and length.
- Robert, Portsmouth
yes a little flat patch corrects itself but my son is 3 and has a flat head on the one side still they told me if it didnt affect his development it was fine i dont agree i say they should treat it and also screen for strep B as it affects a lot of women i didnt even know i had it
- Natasha Louise Brennan, blackwood
My Son was born with a perfect shaped head, By about 3 months it was completely flat at the back, I asked the health visitors and Doctors and they said it would correct it's self, it was still really flat by 2 1/2, he is 3 1/2 now and it's still flat but no where near as noticable, My daughter is 8 months and again she has a flat head at the back, as I knew about it this time I have used a special pillow when she was tiny and have given her tummy time and put her on her side when I was sat with her, I've been very concious of her head being on flat surfaces, but she sleeps 12 - 14 hours on a night! it's not as bad as my son's but still very noticable, I had no idea of this when my son was born and it would have been nice to be aware but it has happened again with my daughter.
- Lisa, Durham UK
You don't need a special mattress. Just a Goi Goi pillow from Ebay which is a special pillow that supports head and shoulders.
- Bobbie, UK
where can i buy the mattress for flat head baby designed by mr owen thank you.
- Aurelia, london in uk
My son is 5 months and his head is really flat right at the back. His neck is strong but he HATES spending time on his belly and forget about sleeping on it. I guess this is because we always made sure to have him on his back all the time. Same thing our doc told us-that it will correct itself-but it's actually getting worse. Our son sleeps 12 hours a night and about 2-3 hours during the day so more than half the day is spent on his back. Should I be looking into the mattress? This is the first I've heard of it. I really don't want to make my son wear a helmet. I warn all my friends who are pregnant to make sure to lie their babies on the sides as well as their backs to avoid this.
- Kerri, Bloomingdale, U.S.
My doctor said my daughters head was flattening at 7months, which I thought was, neglect, I took her to a cranial specialist who said her head shape would improve with time and it has. I believe it is another way for doctors to make money without caring about the parents' suffering.
- Maggie, Wayne U.S
I have a 4month old boy who developed a flat head at about 2months. I have continued to bring the issue up with the health visitor and doctor but have been told it will correct itself. I also work at a nursery and a 2year old child still has the problem so I m worried the doctors will leave it too late until nothing can be done to correct it. A child I worked with in the nursery wore one of those helmets to re shape his head and its worked, I have an appointment with the doctor tomorrow to ask to be referred to see if this will make a difference although they will probably tell me to wait until he can sit up so he's not lying down so much.
- Shona Brading, Edinburgh, Scotland
We have a 5 month old son with a very flat head but worse it is assymetrical as well. We have been told by our GP not to worry but now finding that it is self perpetuating as our son cannot sleep on the 'round' part. His neck muscles are strong and we have seen a physiotherapist. I agree with the worried readers, above. I really wish we had done something sooner to avoid this. Health professionals probably need to be a little more pro-active about this and refer us to Physiotherapists sooner. I now realise that our son did have a neck problem but continual reassurance that all was normal was extremely unhelpful and probably negligent - in the nicest possible way!
- Kate, London, UK
My son developed a flat head at a few months old and my husband and I were really worried. We talked to our GP and HV, who both told us that it would correct itself given time and that we didn't need to worry. We didn't know anything about the condition so listened to their advice. HOWEVER, he is now nearly 4 and it is still very flat and I wish we had done something at the time. I just hope it improves and that he doesn't get bullied over it. We have recently had a daughter and I am now paranoid about her head - so much so that I am convinced it is starting to go flat (even though my mum tells me it isnt!). Anyway, I am taking her to a cranial oesteopath next week, just in case. I would hate not to do anything to help her - like we did for my son. The advice is so conflicting - it's hard to know what's best to do!
- Pauline, England
I noticed after not seing my grandaughter for a few weeks that the back of her head was totally flat. I must admit I was scared for her as I had never seen anything quite like it. My daughter took her to the clinic and was told to take her to the physio. When she did get an appointment a month later they told her, for her age, nearly 5 months, because she has such a strong neck and wants to pull herself up and roll all the time her head would hopefully go "normal" in its own in time. They told my daughter to take her out of the bouncy. and I saw the baby again last week after only a couple of weeks and the difference is very noticable already, but yes it is apparently quite normal since the cot death scare and being told to lay the babies on their backs to sleep, and yes it is quite a shock when confronted with it for the first time. But great to also know there is a lot of support for mums out there.
I had 3 girls myself and always lay them on their sides to sleep, just swapping sides everytime, and had no problems.
- Carole ( Worried Grandma ), Australia
The only person I know whose baby had this syndrome was breastfed exclusively so I think use of this condition by the breast Vs bottle lobby is misleading.
- Suzie S, Epsom, UK
My child had positional plagiocephaly and was treated with great success. Breast feeding has nothing to do with plagiocephaly. I saw dozens of children with the condition while I took my child to the doctor. All I see on these blogs is parents paying thousands for helmets and thousands for travel. My child was in a helmet that was adjustible and cost only $500. It worked like a charm and my child had no problems wearing it. My Good luck and don't be pessamistic, treatment is very easy.
- Diana Thorton, USA
Miranda, my sister's baby (now almost 2) has a terribly flattened head and was breastfed exclusively. My son (5 months) was breast fed initially and then bottlefed and has a perfectly shaped head and has and always has had such strong neck muscles that the health visitors were shocked. He also has not gained weight too fast, he is a good weight for his length (99.6th percentile in height and 75th in weight) and has always gained weight at a slow steady rate and is by no means overweight or even chubby. For these reasons I believe your statement to be too much of a 'blanket' statement and untrue.
- Laura, Cardiff
Those formula fed babies can't lift their heads as well as breastfed kids can - formula fed kids gain weight too fast. So if they can't lift their heads, they stay easily in the same position. I've never heard of a breastfed baby getting a flat head.
- Miranda, London
