Brachycephaly

Deformational Brachycephaly is present when the entire back of the baby’s head is flat (central flattening) and the head is very wide. The forehead is often bossed or prominent on both sides, and the height of the head is excessively high. In our experience, deformational brachycephaly without asymmetry accounts for about 1 in 10 of the children referred for treatment.

Often babies with this problem have a history of excessive time in carriers, possibly due to gastric reflux or other medical condition or circumstance that does not allow the baby to be placed on the tummy during daytime hours while awake and supervised. A pattern of routinely sleeping on the back can cause brachycephaly. The head can flatten uniformly which results in a wider and shorter shape.

Asymmetrical brachycephaly is a common type of brachycephaly where the head is excessively wide and is also asymmetrical. Of the scans sent to Orthomerica for STARband™ fabrication, asymmetrical brachycephaly is second only to deformational Plagiocephaly in incidence. Orthotic management focuses on improving both symmetry and the disproportion of the baby’s head.

Child with brachycephaly before and after STARband treatment