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Observant Parents Make all the Difference

When Kristen Sadlon had her third child, Adam, she was not shocked to find out her son suffered from the conditions torticollis and positional plagiocephaly. It was not more than a few months earlier that the Sadlon’s second child, Emily, was diagnosed with the same exact conditions.

Emily Sadlon was born three weeks premature. At four-and-a-half months, Emily was diagnosed with torticollis and positional plagiocephaly. Torticollis is a condition in which the head is abnormally tilted. It is very common for positional plagiocephaly, the flattening of the head, to accompany this. Treatment is necessary in order to prevent the face and skull from growing unevenly and to avoid limited motion of the head and neck. At six months, Emily began receiving physical therapy at Children’s Specialized Hospital’s outpatient facility in Hamilton. The torticollis caused her to be a bit off balance, therefore treatment was essential in helping her sit up and walk at an age appropriate level. Through physical therapy Emily progressed rather quickly. By ten months she was sitting up and by fifteen months she was walking.

In order to correct the flattening of the head, the Sadlon’s contacted Cranial Technologies, a provider of medical devices used to treat positional head molding in infants. Cranial Technologies supplied what is referred to as a “DOC Band” which consists of a plastic shell and foam lining that is worn twenty-three hours a day. The band applies minor pressure to hold growth in prominent areas while encouraging growth in flat areas. Emily now one and half years old, shows barely any signs that she ever suffered from this condition.

When Adam was born one month premature in November of 2004, Kristen Sadlon noticed in the first seven days that Adam might also suffer from torticollis and positional plagiocephaly. He was immediately brought to Cranial Technologies and Children’s Specialized Hospital in Hamilton to correct the problems. Adam currently receives physical therapy at Children’s Specialized Hospital and wears a headband twenty-three hours a day and is expected to do so until the age of one. If the plagiocephaly is not corrected by then, the band will no longer be useful and unable to correct his condition any further. The only next option would be surgery. Thankfully the outlook for possible surgery is very unlikely at this point. Because Adam received treatment for his conditions in its early stages and has made such significant progress, Kristen does not think that it will be noticeable at all in the future.

“Don’t wait. If you see something that doesn’t look right, act on it and get it checked out,” stated Kristen Sadlon. As a parent of three, she surely has her hands full but is very in tune with the needs of her children. Her close attention to detail has clearly paid off. Through her experience with Emily, she has led Adam in the right direction where he has the support and ability to make a full recovery.

Children’s Specialized Hospital, an affiliate member of the Robert Wood Johnson Health System, is New Jersey’s largest comprehensive rehabilitation hospital dedicated exclusively to children. Services include outpatient services, acute rehabilitation, and long-term care through its sites in Mountainside, Toms River, Fanwood, Hamilton, Newark, and Roselle Park as well as outreach programs in many communities.