Head shape at age 36 months among children with and without a history of positional skull deformation

OBJECTIVE In this study, the authors examined head shape through age 36 months for children with and without a history of positional plagiocephaly and/or brachycephaly (PPB). METHODS Infants with PPB (cases) were identified through a craniofacial clinic at the time of diagnosis. Infants without diagnosed PPB were identified through a participant registry. Clinician ratings of 3D cranial images were used to confirm the presence or absence of PPB. The cohort included 235 case infants (diagnosed PPB, confirmed with 3D imaging), 167 unaffected controls (no diagnosed PPB, no deformation detected), and 70 affected controls (no diagnosed PPB, discernible skull deformation). Participants were seen in infancy (age 7 months, on average) and again at ages 18 and 36 months. At each visit, automated 3D measures of skull deformation quantified posterior flattening and generated an absolute asymmetry score. The authors also used automated 2D measures to approximate overall asymmetry (approximate oblique cranial length ratio) and calculate the cephalic index. They used linear regression to compare cases to unaffected controls and to compare affected versus unaffected controls on all measures. They also calculated the proportion of children in each group with "persistent PPB," defined as one or more head shape measures above the 95th percentile relative to unaffected controls at 36 months. RESULTS Head shape became more rounded and symmetric for children with and without PPB, particularly between infancy and age 18 months. However, children with PPB continued to show greater skull deformation and asymmetry than unaffected controls at age 36 months. These differences were large in magnitude, ranging from 1 to 2 standard deviations (SDs), and in most (85.6%) of the cases, there was evidence of persistent PPB at 36 months. Similarly, although differences were more modest (i.e., 0.26-0.94 SD), affected controls continued to exhibit skull deformation on most measures relative to unaffected controls and approximately 30% had persistent PPB. Within the case group, head shape at 36 months was similar for untreated patients with PPB and for those who received helmet treatment and for patients with and without a history of torticollis. CONCLUSIONS Although head shape continues to improve, children with a history of skull deformation in infancy continue to exhibit measureable cranial flattening and asymmetry through age 36 months.