Our celebratory day began at 8:00am at Cranial Technologies for the final pictures and casting. Dad came along today because we knew that Collin was NOT going to sit still to have pictures taken by Alex! We struggled a bit, but finally got them done. After the pictures, we headed to the casting room where we were met by therapist Sherri. This time, since Daddy was here, Mom got a chance to snap some pictures of the casting! Collin did surprisingly well during the casting and it seemed like he really did not mind it at all. He was equally as good for the first casting 3.5 months ago, so for parents out there dreading this part... Collin is proof that many babies are not phased by it. The important thing to remember is that the casting process does not hurt for our little ones, nor do they get frightened by it. They can see through that cheesecloth sock that is over their head. After the cast, it was bath time and a photo opportunity as a new graduate, with Sherri. That's it! We're done with Cranial Technologies - we sure will miss the great people there! Next we headed to daycare for the rest of the celebration. Collin had balloons and Mommy got a cookie bouquet to share with all his classmates and teachers, as well as a goodie bag for the kiddies. It was a happy day, shared by all... Collin adjusted quite well to his "lighter" head today...and slept like a rock through the night as usual. I think we're going to miss that band! Neah...not really :) |
First evaluation at Cranial Technologies, Inc.: After two visits to the neurosurgeon Collin was diagnosed with moderately severe to severe right posterior plagiocephaly and referred to CTI. At our first visit at CTI, Collin met with their occupational therapist and had several measurements taken of his head. She also observed his range of motion on both sides. After the measurements it was off to have pictures taken, from the front, back, both sides and top. After the first visit we had to wait to hear about insurance coverage, then scheduled Collin's casting day for April 16. |
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| Web Graphics Courtesy of: |
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Casting Day Probably the day any plagio parent dreads the most - the day your child has a plaster cast made of their head, but Collin's sunny disposition shined through as he did not cry - NOT ONCE! First the therapist placed a cheesecloth sock over his head playing a game of peek-a-boo. She explained that the babies can see through the sock better than we can see their eyes. Surprisingly, he didn't flinch at all. Then she began to place the plaster pieces over his head and down to his ears. First the front of the head, then the back. By the time she finished putting on the last piece in the back, it was time to remove the cast. The cast is removed in two large pieces. From start to finish, it took all of 10 minutes and Collin was content during the entire process, playing with his toy. After the casting was completed Collin had a bath to wash his hair and clean off all the plaster drippings on his body. CTI was really great at providing a comfortable atmosphere for the babies. They have a nice big sink and infant tub if you need it, plus baby shampoo, baby wash, lotion, big fluffy towels and rubber duckies! (Collin fussed more with the bath than he did with the plaster cast on his head!) Now we wait for his band to come in which shouldn't be more than two weeks. |
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DOC Band Day One Today Collin got his band and as if he had it all along, he adjusted very well! All skin checks today were successful with minimal red spots which faded within minutes. Collin's naps were also uninterupted as he conked out for all of them and went down as usual for the night at 7:00pm. Pictures on the right were taken at CTI just before and after Collin put on his band for the first time. First he got to play with a sample DOC band to see what it was all about (Daddy had fun playing with it too). Then he got to wear his own band. As you can see, Collin was not phased by it at all! One eye looks kind of "squishy" in some of the pics due to the position of the band... We have to ask about this, but I think it is supposed to do that, if I remember correctly. We're on our way:) |
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| Click on thumbnails for larger view |
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| Click on link at bottom of page to see Collin's band decorated! |
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DOC Banded - 4 WEEKS We are seeing great progress! Collin visited the neurosurgeon last week and we found that he his cranial vault asymmetry has improved by another 0.5cm! When we started out he had total asymmetry of 15mm or 1.5cm. After the repositioning, he improved 5mm; then after three weeks of the DOC Band, he improved another 5mm! Just knowing that his total asymmetry is now just 5mm is very good news for us. Our doctor was very pleased at the results so far! Today we visited Cranial Technologies for his visit. We are now going every two weeks, instead of every week. During his last visit on May 12, 2003 he had considerable growth and had to have some of the inner lining shaved down to allow for more growth. This time as well, he had to have some lining shaved down. There is still a considerable amount of assymetry, especially when we look down at the top of his head, but when we look at the front part of the band on Collin's left side (which is the side that needs to "fill in") we can see that there has been a lot shaved down. That's good! Because it means it is filling in. At this visit and the visit two weeks ago, we got to see Collin's head cast, or "headsicle" as they affectionately call it. They call it a "headsicle" because the cast is actually made into a "bust" of Collin's head, and put on a stick (eg. a popsicle). Kind of cute... It was eye opening to see Collin's head in bust form, seeing how lop-sided it really is. Our OT at CTI says Collin is still on track for four months... Collin turns one on September 22 - what a great first birthday for him to be Band free! We're crossing our fingers. |
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| Newly published article in a peer-reviewed journal of the American Academy of Family Physicans Published May 1, 2003 The article is a little long and detailed, written for the medical community, however - highly recommended reading for those who are looking for *recent* information on this topic. Article Link: Diagnosis and Management of Positional Head Deformity by Wendy S. Biggs, M.D. University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, Michigan |
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DOC Banded - 2 MONTHS Collin continues to have great improvement. At the last visit Cheri at CT shaved a decent amount off the front of Collin's band to leave room for growth. I remember when we left, thinking that he wasn't going to fill in that huge space over the next two weeks. Well, thanks to some nice growth spurts, he DID fill it in! It's not entirely filled in, but pretty close. Today's visit with Cheri at CT went well. She stated that his back is looking really good and she took some down off the back to give him more room. She also said she would still like to see a little more filled in the left side of his forehead. His ears are still somewhat asymmetrical, but no where near as bad as it was before we got the band. We'll be back to CTI in 2 weeks for our next checkup! [Side note: Collin also wore his 'Helmet Laws Stinks' shirt today, and got lots of smiles and chuckles!] Please scope out Collin's 9 month pictures on the Photos Page 2! |
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| This month also marked the opening of www.preciousbambino.com An exclusive on-line shop for the Plagiocephaly community. All gift items designed by who else, Rhonda! Got a question or gift item idea? E-mail Rhonda at [email protected] |
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DOC Banded - 2 and 1/2 months Yay! Today was a great day for Collin! His therapist says we're looking at "another 4 to 6 weeks" in the band! That's great news because on the first visit, Charlotte anticipated him being done by the end of August (on track for 4 months treatment time). Now, 2.5 months into treatment, he has had such great correction that there's a possibility he could be done in one month from now. I think that we may keep him in the band until he grows out of it, to give him the maximum amount of correction we can. The next visit with the neurosurgeon is on July 28th so it will be interesting to see how he feels and what he thinks of Collin's progress so far... Collin got a bit of a band breather this past weekend, taking some time to enjoy the pool and his new "boat". He had a blast - so we're hoping he is out of the band early enough to enjoy some more of the summer without *time constraints* (being out of the band) and enjoying the pool! |
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| CLINICAL REPORT American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Press Release July 7, 2003 For the first time since 1992 when the AAP began its campaign to combat SIDS (the "Back To Sleep" campaign), it has released further guidelines for our pediatricians on the prevention, diagnosis and management of positional skull deformity in an otherwise normal infant. It stresses that pediatricians should advise parents and other health care professionals on methods to decrease the risk of development of skull deformity. Article Link: Prevention & Management of Positional Skull Deformities in Infants by The American Academy of Pediatrics |
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DOC Banded - 3 MONTHS Home stretch!!! Another great day at CTI today! Collin saw Sherri today and then at the end of our visit, Charlotte popped her head in to see him too. Since Collin had some great growth spurts over the past 2 weeks, he had excellent growth on some of the problem areas. Although still a very small amount of flatness above his right ear, for the most part it has filled in. The back looks GREAT - nice and round :) Even the area on his forehead that needed the most improvement showed some signs of filling in over the past couple of weeks. They gave us his "headsicle" to bring to the neurosurgeon visit on Monday, July 28, so we're heading into the home stretch! CTI says we're looking at 3-4 weeks left :) :) UPDATE 8/1/03: I forgot to post the great news after our neursurgeon visit last Monday... The doctor says that Collin's cranial vault assymetry is near "0", which means he doesn't have to go back to the neurosurgeon! As far as the doctor is concerned, he can finish up the DOC Band treatment and he is DONE! Yay! Official "Graduation" news will be posted shortly, after we have our next visit at CTI. |
| July 23, 2003 |
| Click on pictures for full-sized view of the before "headsicle" |
| Welcome to Collin's Progress Page! On this page we will post a journal, if you will, of Collin's DOC Band treatment and describe our visits with the neurosurgeon and the great folks at Cranial Technologies in Paramus, NJ. We'll also try to add any new and exciting news on the plagio front, that may have occured since the last posting. Please feel free to email Collin's mom, Rhonda, if you have any questions or just want to know how Collin adjusted to the band on his journey. |
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Now having the word from both the neurosurgeon AND CTI, it is official. Collin's last day in the band will be in two weeks! We have scheduled the final appointment which will include picture taking as well as an exit cast. I'll be sure to post pics of the casting since I couldn't do it for the initial cast. |
| August 6, 2003 |
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| August 20, 2003 |
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| COLLIN'S A DOC BAND GRADUATE!! |
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| Above: Collin & therapist, Sherri Right: Celebration at daycare Below: Final casting |
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| More Final Casting & Graduation Pics! Click Here |