Will My Child’s Skull Asymmetry On The Back Of His Head Improve With Time?

Q: Dr. Eppley, my son was about a month pre-mature and spent time in the NICU. He has a very mild form of plagiocephaly behind his left ear stretching to the middle of the back of his skull. You can only really tell there is a problem if you look down from above. All of his other features(ears, eyes, jaw, etc.) are perfect and again it’s very hard to see unless you are looking for it but it’s noticeable looking down. You would have no idea he had plagiocephaly looking at his straight on. He is 3 1/2 years old and way past the time where a DocBand or Helmet could help remold his skull. From what I’ve read there are no conclusive studies that indicate that he’ll have any developmental problems in life and most agree that children with mild forms have no issues whatsoever. I went to a local pediatric neurologist and she said I could expect that it will fill out a little but his head will never be “perfect”. I guess I would really like to know your opinion if this very mild form of plagiocephaly will eventually fix itself, or at least get better as he grows over the years. Thank you.

A: At his age, the  skull asymmetry is fixed. It will not self-correct itself or likely get any better. It will stay the same as his head grows, likely not changing from what you see now. You are correct in that there are no developmental issues with non-synostotic skull deformities

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana