Neurodevelopment of Children with Deformational Plagiocephaly

Investigators from the University of Oklahoma performed a prospective study to determine how the rate of cognitive or psychomotor developmental delays in infants with deformational plagiocephaly compared to the expected frequency derived from the Bayley Scales standardized sample. Deformational plagiocephaly is cranial asymmetry in which the anterior portion of one side and the posterior portion of the opposite side of the skull are developed more than their counterparts. This often results from infants having their head in the same position when placed on their back to sleep.

This tertiary-care health center enrolled 110 consecutive infants with radiologically confirmed plagiocephaly without synostosis (PWS) between 1997 and 2003. The same licensed psychologist and professional counselor assessed each infant using the Bayley Scales of Infant Development–II prior to any type of intervention. Scores from the Mental Development Index (MDI – cognitive, language, personal/social abilities) and the Psychomotor Development Index (PDI – fine and gross motor skills) were categorized as accelerated, normal, mildly delayed, and severely delayed. The frequency distributions of these 4 groups were then compared to the expected frequencies derived …