• Doyle M

• Female
• Head Protective Devices
• Infant
• Open Access Document
• Pediatric Chiropractic
• Plagiocephaly

Objective: To  chronicle  the  improvement  in  plagiocephaly  measurements,  cervical  range  of  movement, primitive reflexes, and subjective parental feedback in an infant co-managed with age appropriate chiropractic care for  assessment  and  correction  of  vertebral  and  cranial  subluxation  and  helmet  therapy.  This  case  report  was prepared following the CARE guidelines as presented in 2017. (1)

Clinical features: A five-month-old female infant was  presented  to  clinic  by  her  mother  “seeking  shared  care”  for  her  daughters  plagiocephaly.  Previous  care included  four  chiropractic  visits  over  the  previous  month,  and  recent  attendance  at  a  specialist  paediatric physiotherapist.  Clinical  assessments  using  the  caliper  system  demonstrated  a  20  mm  difference  in  diagonal cranial  vault  measurement.  Decreased  left  lateral  flexion  and  left  rotation  of  the  cervical  spine,  cranial  restrictions, vertebral  subluxations,  and  altered  primitive  reflexes  were  found.

Intervention  and  Outcomes:  Age  appropriate chiropractic care was delivered on 35 visits between 5 months and 17 months of age. Home care including tummy time and infant exercise ball posterior chain activation was recommended. Helmet therapy began at 6 months and finished  at  10.5  months.  Growth  charts  were  within  considered  developmentally  appropriate  percentiles.  Prior  to helmet  therapy  beginning,  cervical  range  of  motion  and  aberrant  primitive  reflexes  improved.  Cranial  Vault Asymmetry  (CVA)  and  Cranial  Vault  Asymmetry  Index  (CVAI)  improved  over  the  12  months  from  a  CVA  of  20mm and  CVAI  of  14.3%  to  a  CVA  of  9mm  and  CVAI  of  5.8%.

Conclusion:  This  case  report  chronicles  reduction  of plagiocephaly  rating  from  severe  to  mild,  improvements  in  primitive  reflexes  and  in  cervical  range  of  motion,  and subjective parent reported infant quality of life in an infant co-managed with age appropriate chiropractic care and helmet therapy. Further prospective studies are required to ascertain the clinical significance of helmet therapy with chiropractic  care,  helmet  therapy  versus  chiropractic  care,  and  different  technical  approaches  (cranial/cervical/pelvic or combinations of each) for the delivery of the adjustment.

Author keywords:  Plagiocephaly - Chiropractic - Helmet therapy - Case report

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