“Little children are little poor” ... Babies really are a constant concern of parents: either colic, then gas, then teeth, or something else ... Crumbs are susceptible to a variety of diseases, including the mysterious torticollis. What is it, how does it appear and how to deal with torticollis in a newborn?
What is torticollis
First of all, it is necessary to determine the concept. What is a torticollis? As you can guess from the name of the disease, this is a “neck curve” syndrome, when the child’s neck is constantly turned in one direction, often even pressed to the shoulder. From the side it looks as if one half of the neck in the crumbs is much shorter.
This problem is quite common among babies, but you should not be scared - it’s quite possible to cure a torticoll in a newborn, you only need a huge reserve of patience. There is a disease due to insufficient development or changes in soft tissues, muscles or bones, in addition, other factors can contribute to the appearance of torticollis (we will talk more about them below). Many doctors believe that torticollis is predominantly congenital rather than acquired, and not only babies born naturally, but also “Caesars” can undergo it. According to statistics, children who had pelvic presentation in the womb most often suffer from torticollis.
The peculiarity of the disease is that it is not always possible to immediately see this ailment. It is especially difficult to recognize wry young inexperienced parents. The disease is right-sided, left-sided or bilateral.
Types of torticollis
There are several varieties of torticollis in a newborn. First of all, congenital. It can develop if the baby was lying in the mother’s womb and was injured in the sternocleidomastoid muscle, or if the baby was injured while passing through the birth canal or during cesarean section.
The second type of disease is a reflex torticollis, it is characteristic of older children, as it appears due to trauma to the jaw or otitis media. Spastic torticollis, which usually worries just babies, is characterized by tension in the muscles of the cervical spine, but the onset of dermatogenesis is preceded by a burn. There is also a neurogenic torticollis - it also bothers older children, this is a subsequent reaction to transferred polio or encephalitis, and traumatic torticollis is a consequence of a fracture of the spine. All varieties of the disease, except congenital, can be combined under the general name - "acquired torticollis." For any of them, damage to only one side of the neck is characteristic, but congenital can develop on both.
Positional torticollis
There is also such a thing as “positional torticollis”. This means that the baby acquired the disease due to the situation in the womb. Say he was lying on his right side and was so comfortable that now he prefers to turn his head only to the right. By the way, torticollis of the right side is most common among children.
Positional torticollis is very common among babies in their first year of life. Often, it also arises from the fact that parents put the children to sleep on the same barrel. But you should not be scared: a positional torticollis is very treatable.
Causes of torticollis in newborns
There are a lot of situations due to which a child may have a torticollis. These include the following:
- Malformations of the mastoid muscle.
- Intrauterine inflammation.
- Improper positioning of the baby's head due to the high pressure of the uterus.
- Deformation or fusion of the vertebra (s).
- Severe childbirth, which damaged the muscle of the child.
- Pelvic presentation, delivery by natural means.
- Cesarean section.
- The threat of miscarriage, severe toxicosis, oligohydramnios and other signs of complex pregnancy.
- Osteomyelitis and so on.
Symptoms of torticollis
Recognizing torticollis, in general, is not difficult if you know about the existence of such a disease. Another thing is that often parents - especially inexperienced ones - do not pay attention to small oddities in their child's behavior. So, what are the signs of torticollis in newborns?
This is a tilt of the head in one direction, perhaps even pressing it to the shoulder. The face of the baby is turned in the opposite direction. The child does not turn his head - or does it extremely little and extremely reluctantly. Often the head of the baby keeps it as if tilted back a little. If the torticollis is strong, then the shoulder blade on the sore side and forearm will be higher, that is, the baby will appear to be skewed on one side.
Symptoms of the face, which can be in both mild and severe forms, are also signs of torticollis in newborns. As a rule, congenital torticollis is noticeable literally in the first days of life, although it often goes unnoticed until the baby reaches the age of several months. An enlarged mastoid muscle also refers to the signs of torticollis in newborns. Treatment in this case is required immediately. You should pay attention to how the baby reacts to an attempt to turn the head in the other direction. If the reaction is screaming, crying, indignation, then we are talking about congenital pathology.
Symptoms of torticollis in newborns, among other things, are a grip on the fist and a bent leg on the same side. As a rule, the child refuses to unclench them, but if it is possible to do this, almost instantly, both the handle and the leg return to their original state. Also, the signs of a torticollis in newborns include a shorter neck on one side. Older children against the background of torticollis can also develop regular headaches, strabismus, and problems with the spine.
Diagnosis of the disease
If the parents found signs of torticollis in their child, the first thing to do is to appear to a specialist. The baby should be reduced to an orthopedist and a neurologist who can confirm or refute parental assumptions. In addition, the baby will need to do an ultrasound scan (ultrasound) of the cervical spine. Some babies are also recommended to undergo neurosonography - the same ultrasound, only the heads. This is done in order to exclude possible concomitant diseases.
Wryneck: is it dangerous
Upon learning that their baby has a particular disease, all parents immediately begin to sound the alarm. Their excitement is absolutely natural and understandable, but in the case of torticollis too much worry there is no good reason. Torticollis in a newborn is treated quite quickly and relatively easily, this is far from the worst disease. However, launching it, however, is also not worth it - if you do not treat torticollis for a long time, it can result in curvature of the spine (scoliosis), osteochondrosis, cranial deformity and other troubles concerning the musculoskeletal system. Therefore, you should not panic, but you need to be treated.
How to treat torticollis
Experts note that if you tackle torticollis correction in the early stages (preferably up to a year old), then it is not difficult to cure it. Some generally recommend starting from the moment the baby turns two weeks old (of course, this is possible if the pathology is congenital and found already in the hospital). There are two ways to treat torticollis in newborns: without surgery and with surgery. Of course, at first they try to do without surgical intervention - they resort to it only in the most extreme cases.
As already mentioned above, the treatment of torticollis in newborns primarily involves visits to narrow specialists. Only after their consultation can you begin “active body movements”. Non-surgical methods include massage, therapeutic exercises, proper body position, physiotherapy, swimming and special orthopedic pillows are possible. In some cases, wearing a special orthopedic collar is necessary. It is best to carry out a set of procedures, then the treatment of torticollis in newborns will be most effective and will not take too much time.
As for surgical intervention, it is not performed before a baby reaches two or three years of age. As already mentioned, these are the most extreme measures, but in some cases even they do not bring the desired result - if the disease is in a very advanced stage. After surgical procedures, the baby will have to be constantly monitored by an orthopedic surgeon.
Correct body position
The first thing that doctors recommend for the treatment of torticollis in newborns is to correctly lay the crumb. This is the so-called passive type of therapy aimed at the gradual stretching of the sore muscle. During the day, the baby’s body position must be repeatedly changed - not only when he is sleeping, but also when he is sitting on his hands or awake: in this way he will not form an addiction to any one side.
In order for the baby not to turn his head in an undesirable direction, you can make a bag with cereals (or sand, or anything else) and put it under the back of the head. The body of the crumbs should lie flat, and not with the letter si. It is advisable not to use a pillow for very tiny guys - it is better to use a diaper for these purposes. By the way, the mattress must be chosen hard enough so that it does not “fall through”. To interest the baby, on the right side of the crib, you can attach or simply put bright toys that he could watch.
Gymnastics with a crank
Parents of a baby suffering from torticollis need to remember that if a child has been prescribed therapeutic exercises, it can be performed both in the hospital and at home, independently. However, without consulting a doctor in physiotherapy, it is better not to do this.
Unfortunately, gymnastic procedures (by the way, it is best to carry them out with a massage) are quite painful, so mom and dad should be patient. But the kids, as a rule, tolerate the massage on the contrary easily and without any inconvenience.
In order to work out with the crumb, both parents will be needed - one “exercises”, the second assists, holding the child. There are a great many exercises, and each complex child is selected its own complex. It must be shown for the first time by the attending physician. So, we can distinguish among the gymnastic procedures for the treatment of torticollis in newborns the following:
- Raising the baby's head until it touches the chin of the chest.
- “Free hanging” of the head without support when the child is in his arms (after a while, raise his head, support, so that the baby rests, and repeat the exercise).
- Tilts the head in different directions.
- Raising a lying child by the handles (if the baby is not yet sitting on its own, you need to make sure that he does not sit down during this exercise).
- The whirling of the baby lying on its side, in different directions alternately (the side also changes).
All exercises should be performed twice a day, in the morning and evening. In addition, it is recommended to engage in the pool - but always with an experienced instructor and at a water temperature of thirty-seven degrees.
Massage with crankshaft
Massage for newborns with a crankshaft is indicated for ten days, it can be performed by both a specialist and any member of the family - but, again, only after medical permission. The purpose of the massage is to relax the sore muscle, so all actions should be smooth and accurate, without causing pain to the baby.
You can massage the baby in this way:
- Stroking, divert the baby’s neck alternately in different directions.
- Using two fingers, smooth the neck from the ears to the shoulder blades.
- If there is a thickening in the muscle, you can rub it and do rhythmic tapping.
- Putting the child on his back, massage the breast, tummy, arms and legs.
- Turn the baby from one side to another.
Of no small importance is how the child is held on the handles. If it is worn with a “column” (at least facing you, at least with your back), then the cheek of an adult should “support” the head of the crumbs and prevent it from turning in the sick side.
Orthopedic pillow with crank
An orthopedic pillow for newborns is considered to be a very useful remedy for crankshaft. Her choice must be approached correctly. The main thing is to ask what material the pillow is made of - it should be hypoallergenic, especially if the baby is completely tiny.
When choosing an orthopedic pillow for newborns with a crank, it must be remembered that it must have good breathability so that the child does not suffocate. Also important is the location of the bed: the light should fall on it from the sick side of the baby.
Surgical intervention
If neither the orthopedic pillow for newborns with crankshaft helped, or massage, or gymnastics, or physiotherapy, or any other measures, it remains to resort to surgery. Immediately it is worth reassuring parents - this happens very, very infrequently.
Surgery involves dissection of the muscle or its lengthening. Dissection is done under general anesthesia, the child should be at least two years old. Elongation is allowed for children from the age of four.
Torticollis or not
There are frequent cases when torticollis is confused with muscle tone. If the baby can turn his head in all directions, does not press it to any shoulder, does not lean back, can keep his head straight, but simply prefers to turn in some specific direction - this is just about muscle tone. This is the power of habit, once the crumb was convenient in this position, on this side, and therefore now he prefers to use it.
Muscle tone is a much smaller problem than torticollis, and passes without a trace. As a rule, to treat it, it is enough to deploy the baby in a certain direction, as well as undergo a massage course and / or paraffin wrap of the neck.
Useful tips for the prevention of torticollis
It’s always easier to prevent a disease than to cure it. What can be done to prevent torticollis in a newborn (if, of course, the pathology is not congenital)?
The answer is simple: you need to do gymnastics with your child (you can do this both “on land” and in the bath), place it correctly in the bed and on your hands, and do preventive massage. In addition, if the pregnancy proceeded safely and the birth was easy, this is also a good chance that the baby will not be affected by this disease.
One way or another, torticollis in a newborn is treatable. The main thing is to start acting in time, and then everything will be fine.