It is not always the case that a baby is born completely healthy. Sometimes there are cases when serious problems are found that put the further development of the baby at risk. One of the problems is torticollis in infants - a disease in which the head is tilted and the head itself is turned in the opposite direction. This disease does not go away on its own, so the help and supervision of a specialist is mandatory. The most common form of this disease is a congenital torticollis in a child, but there is also an acquired, developing later torticollis, an installation torticollis. Let us dwell on each of these forms in more detail.
Congenital torticollis in infants
It occurs for two main reasons:
- Due to hypertrophy of the sternocleidomastoid muscle, which is scarred and shortened subsequently.
- Another reason for the onset of congenital torticollis in a baby is the incorrect position of the fetus in the womb, resulting in defects in the cervical spine.
- Intrauterine development of infectious myositis.
Acquired torticollis in infants
It is divided into several types: dermatogenic, desmogenic, compensatory, arthrogenic, hypoplastic, bone, neurogenic, spastic torticollis.
Accordingly, these species determine the reasons for the appearance of acquired torticollis:
Dermatogenic torticollis - is formed due to deep scars on the neck, caused, for example, by a burn or wound.
Desmogenic torticollis - due to inflammatory diseases on the neck, such as inflammation of the lymph nodes.
Compensatory torticollis - perhaps it may appear with impaired vision or hearing.
Bony torticollis in infants - occurs due to pathology of the cervical vertebrae
Neurogenic torticollis - due to damage to the neuromuscular fibers of the neck.
Spastic torticollis - arising from muscle contraction (can be observed in children with cerebral palsy).
Diagnostics
Diagnosis of torticollis is not always an easy task for a specialist. The fact is that in the first 10 days of life in infants, the disease is practically not expressed, the symptoms of torticollis begin closer to 21 days of life, when the sternocleidomastoid muscle begins to thicken. A swelling appears and parents, having noticed this, should contact a specialist as soon as possible for an early diagnosis of the disease. If treatment has not begun, then the development of torticollis goes further. The child’s head bends to the affected muscle, and the face - on the contrary - turns in the opposite direction, and if the lesion is bilateral, then the spine is deformed, then kyphosis increases.
If treatment of torticollis did not begin at an early age, then later on, during the period of intensive growth of the child, it will become even more noticeable: an asymmetry of the skull, face, and cervical collar occurs.
Only an orthopedic surgeon can diagnose and prescribe treatment for torticollis, subsequently, according to his prescriptions, a manual therapist can conduct treatment. Diagnosis can be carried out by visual inspection, as well as using radiography of the cervical spine.
Regarding the treatment of this disease, several methods are used:
- exercise therapy with a kinesitherapist;
- massage;
- hirudotherapy;
- physiotherapy;
- reflexology;
- pool (if it is a spastic torticollis).
Parents should remember that neglected torticollis cause secondary deformations on the child’s body, including scoliosis of the cervical and thoracic spine, facial asymmetry. Therefore, do not self-medicate or rely on the examples of those parents whose children torticollis passed independently during the first year of life. Only an examination of the baby by a specialist is the only sure way to solve this problem.