BABY PHYSIOTHERAPY
Our babies are the most precious things to us and we always want them to grow up healthy and happy.
It is so important when working with infants that we only provide the safest, evidence based treatment. We do not provide manipulations to infant spines (cracking) as these adjustments have been linked to serious risks such as neck fractures.
we will only provide the safest, gentle hands on techniques combined with exercise based treatment. Some of the common things we see in infants include Torticollis and Plagiocephaly, Developmental Delay and Club Foot.
Torticollis
Sometimes when babies are squished up inside mum's tummy they can develop tightness of their neck muscles. If the neck muscles are tight or weak on one side, baby can have difficulty turning, looking and rolling to both sides equally. If left untreated, this can lead to issues with feeding, flat spots on the skull (plagiocephaly and brachycephaly) and delayed achievement of motor milestones (such as head control, rolling, sitting and coordination). We will perform a comprehensive assessment and treatment and work with your family to implement a home program to reduce your baby's torticollis,
Plagiocephaly and Brachycephaly
Some babies develop flattened spots on the middle back (brachycephaly) and/or back and side (plagiocephaly) of their head. Plagiocephaly and brachycephaly are more common in babies with torticollis as well as babies who have developmental delays.
Our physiotherapists will perform in depth assessments, including developmental checks, assessing babies neck movement and muscle lengths and taking measurements of any asymmetries to determine the severity of plagiocephaly/brachycephaly. The appropriate treatment will then be provided such as hands on techniques, home strengthening and positioning program and In more severe certain cases, working with the orthotist to refer for helmet therapy.
Developmental Delay
Some little ones are slower to reach their milestones like reaching, rolling, sitting and standing. Play based therapy and education on targeted exercises can give your little one a helping hand with meeting their gross motor milestones.
Club foot
Club foot is when a babies foot is rotated down and in, usually as a result of positioning in utero.
It is important that club foot receives early intervention to ensure the baby doesn't have issues when standing and walking at a later time.
Director of Free Movement Physio and mum to her toddler Theo, Katrina loves seeing babies and working with their families. Come and see her at the Babies and Kids clinic on a Wednesday or Thursday.
For more information on some of the conditions above, please see our