After birth, a young mother and a neonatologist may notice that the baby has a short neck. In a newborn child, it is often easy enough to diagnose this syndrome, because it is clearly seen how the child is compressed and the neck as if simply disappears.
The short neck syndrome in a newborn can be a consequence of chromosomal diseases as a result of densification of vertebral bodies, or observed in a child after a childbirth injury that contributed to the damage to the cervical spine and spinal cord during the passage of the child through the birth canal.
Syndrome of short neck: treatment
If the baby has a short neck, the osteopathic doctor can prescribe wearing a special collar of Shantz , which is a band of soft materials designed to fix the cervical spine. The newborn child is dressed immediately after birth, as soon as the neonatologist noticed that the short neck of the baby causes weakening of the muscles, pressing the shoulders upwards and restless sleep. In this case, wearing a collar can improve the process of blood supply to the brain. You should carefully consider the process of wearing such a collar. The duration of its use is determined by the doctor in each case in accordance with the degree of severity of the short neck syndrome in the baby.
In addition to wearing a collar, the physician can additionally prescribe physiotherapy (electrophoresis), therapeutic massage.
This syndrome is dangerous for the child's body and requires close attention, because with shortening of the neck there is an increased tonus of the shoulders and their excessive lifting. This increased tone of the area of the collar zone promotes the oxygen starvation of certain parts of the brain, as a result of which the child may have problems with vision in the future. Therefore, it is important to recognize the syndrome of the short neck in time and begin complex treatment.