How to correct head tilt?

Many people find that their head seems to be tilted to one side. The main cause is bad living habits, such as: bad sleeping posture, which will cause the head to be tilted in the long run; always tilting the head when doing homework or doing something, which will also cause this situation. Generally speaking, for teenagers, their bones have developed completely, and head tilt can only be improved by developing good habits. This article briefly introduces the situation of head tilt in newborns.

Why do children often tilt their heads?

If a child has a tilted head, it may be called "torticollis".

Torticollis literally means "twisted neck"; medically it describes the phenomenon in which the head is tilted or turned to one side due to inconsistent muscle strength on both sides of the neck.

Torticollis is a very common phenomenon in newborns. Because the fetus is curled up in the uterus, as the fetus grows day by day, the space becomes smaller and smaller, and the fetus's neck will gradually twist to coordinate the body.

Adapting to the space in the uterus. As a result of twisting the neck, the muscle on one side of the neck, the sternocleidomastoid muscle, will gradually be stretched, resulting in a difference in the length of the sternocleidomastoid muscles on both sides of the neck. After the baby is born, the head is naturally tilted

Towards the shorter side of the sternocleidomastoid muscle. If the child's head is held in a neutral position or turned to the side, the shorter sternocleidomastoid muscle will be stretched.

A week or two after the baby is born, the stretched muscles continue to swell and form a large lump. At this time, the child likes to tilt his head to the damaged side, because this posture can keep the damaged muscles in the most relaxed state.

There's no feeling of being pulled. As the swelling subsides, the injured muscle will return to normal or form a fibrous cord. Because the fibrous cord is stiff and not as elastic as uninjured muscles, your child's neck muscle movement will be limited.

In addition to the above reasons, torticollis may also be caused by certain reasons after birth. For example, when a child's head is relatively flat in one place, he will tilt it because it is more comfortable to lie down that way; or parents always let the child

Lying in the same position for a long time will cause children to like to keep their heads in the same position, which can cause positional torticollis. Positional torticollis causes the neck to twist repeatedly in one direction, causing the muscles on one side of the neck to tighten.

Gradually getting shorter.

What are the correction methods for torticollis

A doctor can determine whether a child has torticollis through a simple physical examination. If you do not feel a small olive-shaped lump on the shorter side of your child's neck, simply correct your child's sleeping position regularly and try to keep his head in a neutral position. If a child has a small lump on his neck, parents should give the child neck massage and stretching exercises at home under the guidance of a doctor.

If the neck muscle tone and length are still inconsistent 2 to 3 months after the baby is born, the doctor will ask a physical therapist to intervene. The physical therapist will use coordination exercises to stretch the shorter neck muscle, the sternocleidomastoid muscle. Generally, torticollis can be corrected after 2 to 3 months of treatment.

For the very few children who do not improve with physical therapy, the surgeon may consider surgically cutting the tight sternocleidomastoid muscle on the shorter side of the neck to achieve the purpose of muscle stretching.