Cranial Helmets | Human Technology Prosthetics & Orthotics

CRANIAL REMOLDING HELMET

Human Technology Prosthetics and Orthotics offers infants cranial remolding helmets featuring advanced technology to provide the needed products and services to properly serve the child and family. Our skilled team is dedicated to serving infants and their families, offering the best experience possible through the use of the most suitable product for the situation.

HOW ARE HEAD SHAPE DEFORMITIES CAUSED?

Distortion of the head is usually initiated by the child lying on its back when sleeping in a prone position. An infant’s head, which increases in size by three times within the first 12 months, is susceptible to outside pressure that can affect the shape of the head, including in utero restriction or from apparatuses like car seats, recliners, and swings. Increased risk factors include being born prematurely, multiple births, and torticollis.

An ailment where a tight neck muscle on one side causes the head to tilt and turn in one direction more than the other, torticollis causes imbalanced head pressure when lying down, which may lead to plagiocephaly. Physical therapy is recommended to stretch, strengthen, and improve the neck’s range of motion.

EXPLAIN A CRANIAL REMOLDING HELMET

An orthosis used in various circumstances, a cranial remolding helmet is used to treat head shape abnormalities, such as brachycephaly, plagiocephaly, and scaphocephaly. The helmet is used from age three to 18 months, with the best outcomes when utilized at the earliest junctures. Human Technology Prosthetics and Orthotics supplies a full line of cranial remolding helmets, including the STAR family from Orthomerica Inc.

When Should a Cranial Remolding Helmet Be Used?

A cranial remolding helmet is typically used when the flatness is severe or moderate after two months of repositioning has been attempted. Immediately contact your pediatrician, as it may require several weeks to navigate the necessary steps to receive the helmet.

DESCRIBE THE FUNCTIONALITY OF A CRANIAL REMOLDING HELMET

The objective of using a Cranial Remolding Helmet is to improve the head shape via contact at the bossed areas to eliminate growth. With pockets of space at the flattened areas, the skull can grow organically. Achieving improvement is determined by the rate of the infant’s growth while wearing the helmet. With a desire to begin wearing the helmets as early as possible, it is worn 23 hours a day.

As they get older, the growth of a child’s skull slows, resulting in decreased benefits. Children usually cease wearing the helmet when they reach 12 months, though severity, age, crawling, and developmental milestones, including being able to roll around while sleeping and having no preference for turning the head to one side, factor into this decision. Upon achieving these milestones, the head shape is not at risk for deterioration with subsequent growth, as it should occur evenly, maintaining the existing shape.

EXPLAIN AGGRESSIVE REPOSITIONING

One option for aggressive repositioning is placing the child on its stomach, which reduces head pressure on the flat areas. Repositioning is regarded as the optimum method to prevent head shape deformities and may correct a current deformity. Should flatness remain after two months, a helmet may be needed. All infants must spend waking hours on their stomachs to fortify their muscles, boosting expected physical maturity.

Is a Prescription Needed for a Cranial Remolding Helmet?

An evaluation by a pediatrician or a specialist for a cranial remolding orthosis requires a prescription. This assessment enables the doctor to evaluate if other issues are present that cause head-shape deformities such as craniosynostosis, a premature fusing of a cranial suture. These types of issues would likely entail surgery.

If it is determined that a cranial remolding orthosis is needed, an appointment is arranged with a pediatric-certified and licensed orthotist. Measurements are taken, and a scan is performed by a Human Technology practitioner to corroborate the diagnosis, with the information provided to the insurance company to determine coverage for the orthosis.

Explain the Scan Process

Through the use of a scan, the casting process needed to create a custom-molded cranial remolding helmet is unnecessary. The scanners utilized are safe for infants, and no eyewear or protection is needed. The data collected is downloaded to a five-axis carver for orthosis production.

This non-invasive diagnostic screening tool features customized software that enables an orthotist to gather, inspect, and quantify clinical outcomes. The software collects surface data on slices through pediatric head shapes and shares comparative maps of the head, plus cross-sectional slice comparisons. This gives an orthotist the quantitative data to support positive clinical outcomes for these orthoses to physicians, therapists, caregivers, and insurance companies.

The Food and Drug Administration requires cranial remolding orthoses to be fit within 14 days of the scan date. Exceeding this period may lead to an ill-fitting orthosis, which may necessitate a new scan.

Are Follow-up Appointments Required?

To ensure the helmet’s fit and performance, a follow-up visit is scheduled four weeks after use begins. Additional visits are usually every four to six weeks thereafter, depending on the infant’s age and the situation’s seriousness.

Is a Cranial Remolding Helmet Covered by Insurance?

Practically all our patients receive approval from their health insurance plan within two to four weeks of the evaluation appointment. Human Technology Prosthetics and Orthotics staff work with parents to process the claim, supplying the required clinical conditions to obtain coverage.

There are infrequent situations when a health plan does not cover the helmet. Parents are instructed to contact their policy provider and request a cranial remolding orthosis, which is under the device code S1040.