Cranial Remolding Helmets

Jim Chea - Pediatric Specialist

Personal experience

My training for cranial remolding (plagiocephaly) helmets was received while working at Boston’s Children’s Hospital. During my five year tenure, I learned an advance plagiocephaly helmet design and protocol developed by Dr. Gary Rogers, MD, plastic surgeon. The plagiocephaly helmet is a variation of the Starband helmet, the first FDA approved plagiocephaly helmet. An effective and easy to use helmet and protocol, I’ve successfully used over 2000 times. Treatment generally takes 2 – 4 months, but varies depending on the patient’s age and severity of cranial asymmetry.

What is plagiocephaly?
Plagiocephaly is a deformation of the skull characterized by an asymmetric flattening of one side. It is typically the result of external forces on the head either intrauterine or as a result of an infant being in the same position for long periods of time. Often associated with torticollis or neck tightness, plagiocephaly results from the constant positioning of the head to the same side causing it to become flat to one side often with facial asymmetry.

Brachycephaly is a symmetrical flattening of the back of the skull with the same underlying cause as plagiocephaly, but with a different deformational result. The head typically looks very wide in the back from side to side and short from front to back. The back of the head also commonly looks taller with an upper ridge in the back.

What can I do about my baby’s head shape?

You can talk to your pediatrician or a pediatric physical therapist about positioning and supervised tummy time while your baby’s is awake. It is imperative that you continue to follow your pediatrician’s advice about the Back to Sleep program. In mild cases, positioning and supervised tummy time may be enough.

In more moderate or severe cases, a cranial remolding helmet may be considered. Cranial remolding helmet therapy has been used successfully throughout the country for many years. The goal of helmet therapy is to redirect skull growth to round out a patient’s head. It does not squeeze a baby’s head and cannot change what has already occurred, therefore it is important infants are screened and evaluated at an age young enough, ideally 4 months, to maximize remaining head growth.