developmental delays--metopic

[jennahlynne]

Hi there, my son carter has gross motor and speach delays he is reciveing therapy for both...Is this realted to mild metopic with trigon?

[paynesmom]

There does seem to be at least a slightly higher incidence of delays with metopics. But they just don't know if the severity (of the trigon) coorelates. It doesn't seem to in the study below. (Which is surprising...you would think that the more severe would cause more delays but it doesn't work that way.)
http://journals.lww.com/jcraniofacialsurgery/Abstract/2009/01000/Is_There_a_Relationship_Between_the_Severity_of.23 .aspx

It is just one more mystery of the Metopic Cranio condition.


Edit: (This study actually only speaks for one of the problems you asked about. I apologize. I don't know as much about the gross motor delays.)

[Mindy]

Here is the issue with the studies. They can't prove a cause and effect relationship meaning the premature closure causes the delays. All they know is that the correlation exists. In some cases, it may be syndromatic where you see a whole host of characteristics with metopic cranio being one of those characteristics associated with a specific syndrome. But, in the other non-syndromatic cases of cranio, the correlation has been reported in literature. Sometimes I wonder if the frontal part of the brain, which controls language development and other cogntive functions, could be, in some children, growing at a slower rate than the rest of the brain causing the metopic suture to fuse earlier (result in trigon.) since the skull expands by brain growth. Its like which came first, the chicken or the egg. In any case, the delays are treated with early intervention.

As for your question, I have seen cases of speech delay and less gross motor delay with metopic on here, but then there are children who are fine despite pretty significant trigon. so, who knows??

[paynesmom]

Mindy, you mention some of the same things I wonder about all the time. I really really wish there were more studies done on this. It seems like there could be. I know there are things in the medical field that are just never going to be known, especially with the brain, but I feel like they could figure some of this out.

[Mindy]

I know what you mean Amanda. The thing is that in order to study this, they would need to actually look at the brains of very young children (infants) and look at their development as well to see if things are on track and then monitor for closure of the suture. It would be very difficult with too many variables to account for. Dr. Staffenberg has once mentioned to me that some surgeons wonder if it is possible to actually have a localized increase in pressure just in the frontal part of the brain as a result of premature closure which could account for some of the delays, but no such study has yet to analyze that since it would be difficult to get a parent of a non-cranio kid and cranio kid to agree to have a probe inserted into their child's head to get normative and non-normative values. Some of those studies that show increased pressure on mild metopics (those awful japanese studies) actually measure the pressure while in the OR and according to Dr. Fearon, pressure is elevated from anesthesia so those results aren't valid. So, its so hard to draw conclusions from this type of research. All we can do is trust our own instincts when our mommy gut tells us something isn't right. But, I often do think about the chicken and egg theory b/c it does make sense.

[Shar]

It would make sense in our case since H has no delays. It's pretty likely that her early fusion is due to her being breech. So for her and some kids it's in utero positional and with that maybe they have no delays. :dunno I mean REALLY :dunno! Big speculation I'm making, but it sure would be nice to have some solid answers!

[Lauren]

As language is a constantly developing skill, the parts of the brain that control it can also vary by a few centimeters. That sounds like a small amount, but really its huge. There are studies that show that if there is an insult of any kind (tumor, injury, lack of oxygen, etc), the language centers migrate to compensate for the damaged tisse.

Mindy is right. There is no way to know for sure but given the plasticity of the brain it is unlikely that the suture synostosis is the sole "cause" of any delay.

[Shar]

Wow! That is really cool, Lauren! I love the thought of the brain doing that! Amazing!

[Lauren]

It happens all the time. People have strokes or brain injury and relearn the skills because the brain is wired to do whatever it can to work right. Even severe epileptics who have had the corpus collosum (the bridge between the right and left hemispheres) cut to stop seizures have been able to "reassign" different parts of the brain to do taks that used to be controlled by the other side.

We probably only understand about 10% of what the brain is capable of. Actually, when I was in grad school it was 10%, I'll guess we understand 20-25% now. Humbling isn't it?

[kking]

I know Austin's case is more "severe" - but at 12 mos. his speech nearly stopped except for babbling which became less and less. By surgery at 22 mos, he was hardly making much noise. Our neurosurgeon at Johns Hopkins told us that he sees many metopic cranio cases with speech issues. And for Austin, his case was so severe, he didn't know if he'd ever talk again due to the amount of pressure that impacted the frontal lobes. Thankfully, Austin is talking and some days won't shut up. LOL We saw slow improvement after surgery with speech therapy, but it did come back .... with a vengance. :) (he had surgery at 22 mos and again at 3).

[*jules*]

I'm just now seeing this thread. As most of you know, Alex (also metopic - moderate) has gross motor delays. I'm also beginning to have concerns with his fine motor skills as well (has not seemed to improve in the past 4mos). I'm going to bring this up with the PT on Tues. As for speech, how do you tell if there is a delay at this age (he is 11.5mos)? He is constantly making noises...grunting, yelling, oooo and ahhhing. He says mama, dada, baba, bubba. Is there something more he should be doing by now? I'm also begininning to wonder about his cognitive skills....at this same age my older son understood "NO" and could point to various objects when asked to locate them (where's your shirt, where's your shoes, where's your car, etc). Alex just doesn't seem there yet....any suggestions or advice?

[angeleka]

Andrew was moderate metopic. He was diagnosed as being pretty far behind in fine and gross motor skills before surgery. These issues seemed to correct themselves immediately after surgery. He has always been advanced in speech and cognitive thought though. It is very possible since the brain can only concentrate on one area at a time that he was behind in that area because his brain was working on improving the other areas. And, coincidentally after surgery his brain decided to improve the motor skills area. It is hard to say if the surgery corrected the problem or if his brain just wasn't ready to work on that area yet.
I have not been on here in quite a while and I do not know your back story, but if you are concerned, I would contact your NS. If you are not comfortable with that person's response, I would get a second or even third opinion until I was satisfied with the answer. The fine line here is to become comfortable with the answers you get and not to keep looking for the answer you may want.

[jennahlynne]

I'm just now seeing this thread. As most of you know, Alex (also metopic - moderate) has gross motor delays. I'm also beginning to have concerns with his fine motor skills as well (has not seemed to improve in the past 4mos). I'm going to bring this up with the PT on Tues. As for speech, how do you tell if there is a delay at this age (he is 11.5mos)? He is constantly making noises...grunting, yelling, oooo and ahhhing. He says mama, dada, baba, bubba. Is there something more he should be doing by now? I'm also begininning to wonder about his cognitive skills....at this same age my older son understood "NO" and could point to various objects when asked to locate them (where's your shirt, where's your shoes, where's your car, etc). Alex just doesn't seem there yet....any suggestions or advice?


with carter they noticed that he dpoes not initiate any converstaion. He only baables when he is stimulated by mouth such as eating. he also does not copy and gestures. we had his hearing test this week and it showed hearing loss.

[angeleka]

I'm just now seeing this thread. As most of you know, Alex (also metopic - moderate) has gross motor delays. I'm also beginning to have concerns with his fine motor skills as well (has not seemed to improve in the past 4mos). I'm going to bring this up with the PT on Tues. As for speech, how do you tell if there is a delay at this age (he is 11.5mos)? He is constantly making noises...grunting, yelling, oooo and ahhhing. He says mama, dada, baba, bubba. Is there something more he should be doing by now? I'm also begininning to wonder about his cognitive skills....at this same age my older son understood "NO" and could point to various objects when asked to locate them (where's your shirt, where's your shoes, where's your car, etc). Alex just doesn't seem there yet....any suggestions or advice?
I am not 100% how they got their results for Andrew's speech test at 8 months of age, but they did. He wasn't saying anything then really, but I know they checked for babbling and other things like that. We went to a neuropsychologist for our testing. It was pretty thorough and lasted over an hour.
As for being behind in fine motor, the way it was explained to us when we got Andrew's results was that it would be very rare for the child to be behind in gross motor and not fine motor. Keep in mind that the brain grows at different speeds. It cannot improve on motor development and cognitive thought at the same time so sometimes there are what seems to be long delays in the improvement of one area because the brain is working on the other. Not to say nothing is wrong or something is wrong with your child. Just keep in mind that finding these delays at such a young age is a fine art. On top of the usual "every child is different" concept, it is hard to say if he is on track or behind based on your other son's growth rate. Just keep following up with the Drs and don't let them toss aside your concerns. As I learned with Andrew... if your gut tells you something is wrong, it probably is. It may not be to the extreme you think, but don't stop pushing until you get the tests you need.

[grayridge]

Jimmy is mild metopic, he has been diagnosed as developmentally delayed by at least 45% in speech, fine and gross motor skills, cognitive and social skills. This diagnosis was determined after evaluations by several specialist through our Early Intervention program. He has received therapy for these delays for the past 14 months and is all caught up except for cognitive and social skills but they are coming along and part of it is just trying to figure out to teach him his way and not the way most kids learn things. Jimmy was evaluated for speech by a neurophsychologist and because of the fact that we had at least 7 months of silence, no babbling, very little smiling, basically he would cry when he needed something and that was it. This was after four months of cooing, babbling and humming/singing. So I knew he could communicate but something was preventing it. We never have figured out why he regressed but at some point he stopped regressing and started making great progress. He still has the "NO" issue and as Julie described with Alex that he also has trouble with directions: get your shoes, put this here or do that. Socially he is a bit off, he prefers the company of adults over other children and when in a group of kids he will just do his own thing and basically not interact with the other kids, we are working on this though so hopefully it will resolve. Jimmy is mild metopic but also was exposed to a variety of drugs, alcohol, and tobacco while he was in utero so there is no way to tell what has caused the delays. We do know that we have some challenges ahead of us and our plan of attack is to just watch for the pitfalls before they come up and teach him how to work around his issues, it's not going to be easy but it's a small trade off for having him in our life. Hang in there, your little man will amaze you!

[*jules*]

Thanks for all in the information and advice ladies. I'm not worried like...OMG, something is wrong with my baby, but I've definately been watching him closely. He's made some good improvement with his gross motor...perhaps since he/we have been focusing mostly on that, his fine motor and cognitive are taking a break ? I'm also kind of concerned about what I think is extreme separation anxiety he still has....I thought kids are usually over that phase by one year old. Anyone elses cranio baby totally freak when you walk out of the room?

[Debbied]

Hi Julie, I can't remember who had posted on the separation anxiety before but I swear I saw someone post that post surgery babies have this to an extreme for a little while. Maybe someone will chime in but I know I read that. Also, my neighbors son just turned one he and Henry play all the time and if his Mom leave the room he totally freaks out still. She said he will do it no matter who is watching him even her sister.

Debbie



Thanks for all in the information and advice ladies. I'm not worried like...OMG, something is wrong with my baby, but I've definately been watching him closely. He's made some good improvement with his gross motor...perhaps since he/we have been focusing mostly on that, his fine motor and cognitive are taking a break ? I'm also kind of concerned about what I think is extreme separation anxiety he still has....I thought kids are usually over that phase by one year old. Anyone elses cranio baby totally freak when you walk out of the room?

[*jules*]

thanks Debbie. I may do a search for those threads when I have some more time.

Also, Jennah....so sorry for hijackinging your thread.

[Shar]

All my babies had extreme separation anxiety. IMO it's normal and healthy. If a baby or young toddler didn't get very anxious without his number one caregiver around, that would worry me! I would be concerned that they weren't developing proper attachments.

[*jules*]

I understand what you mean Sharla, but is it normal for them to become so panic-stricken after a few seconds. literally. ??? I even make sure I'm taking to him so he knows I'm still there, even tho out of his line of sight. I should clarify that I never leave him in an enclosed room alone...our front room, kitchen and main bathroom are all one big open area. I'll walk from the front room int othe kitchen part and he totally freaks. Not just cying, but almost frantic with panic. I could understand if I was away for minutes at a time, but a few seconds? It's making me crazy!!!!

[Debbied]

Hi,

Henry had an early metopic suture and softspot closure but has been early to on target for all his milestones..He is 10.5 mos old. His pediatrician said he was actually advanced in the area of language he has been saying all the time: mama, mom, dada, doggie, baba, nana, hi, hey and said dupie (what we call his diaper) and even said his name (but only twice). He always says them appropriately i.e. you can point to our dog and he says doggie, he says mama to me and dada to dada. He also has said some two word sentances like dada baba in the morning because he is hungry etc. I have noticed though in the last week and a half that he has seemed to stop saying a lot of his words though. His babbling even sounds different he is saying a lot of "er" sounds. I also noticed his tongue seems to be pushed towards the top of his mouth alot. He has gotten two new top teeth so it could be a factor..Anyway, I was so concerned about it that I called his pediatrician and she said since he is doing well everywhere else that he should be fine and that sometimes kids lax on one skill while working on another. He has been trying to walk so I am thinking maybe that is it although I am still concerned I have to be honest. He has also been early in gross motor he has been cruising for awhile and took two steps friday without holding onto anything and sat down. He also seems to do really well with fine motor also i.e. picks up his own food and will even use a spoon! He can turn individual pages in a book also.. Also as far as social goes, he is very social and likes to play with children and smiles often at people and waves.

I do have to say though this last month he seems to be slowing down progress wise. Normally, I write down about 8 new things he does each month and I think this month there was only one.

Oh some things he does not do: clap and point. I think he should be doing them by now but has no interest. He sucks his thumb all the time though which makes it hard to clap but I have seen him clap with his one free hand lol..

Anyway, just wanted to share were he was at..Like I said he has been doing awesome and I want other mild metopic moms to know that it is possible. I will be watching his language to make sure it stays at the level it has been, if it does not then I will get him officially evaluated.

[Shar]

Julie ~ It can be normal if you are basicly the only one who cares for him. With my own kids at his age I start leaving them for a few minutes at a time (in a baby safe spot) but where they can still hear my voice. Like to go get my coffee mug (which I'm always misplacing) or something from the other room. After a few experiences of mommy leaving and coming right back, they start to trust that you are in fact coming back. But keep in real real short at first. Here's me: "Mommy's going to get her laptop. I'll be right back!" Baby: "Gaga goo goo (has no idea what's about to happen)." Then, "WAAAAAAAAAAA!" they totally freak when they see you go. Me, from the other room: (acting like it's a beautiful sunny day with the birds chirping outside the window) "Oh! Here it is! Here's Mommy's laptop!" Baby: WAAAAAAAAAAA! WAAAAA! WAAAAAAAA! Me, back in the room with my laptop: "See, Mommy came back! Just needed to get my laptop. You're okay! See, here's Mommy (big smile to show you're back and happy, ha ha)." At this point I'd usually not pick up baby and reinforce that they freaked out over me leaving. Especially if it was just a short little bit of time. But if they seemed like they weren't settling down, I'd probably sit on the floor next to them (that way you aren't tempted to pick them up and spend the next 20 mins walking around the room with them in your arms, patting them on the back and swaying back and forth), then use some toys or book something to engage them in a different activity. Then repeat the process a few times every day until baby gets the idea and gradually lengthen the time out of the room as baby is handling it well.

Now, if you do do all of that (do do, my kids would laugh if I said that out loud :giggle :crazy) and after an honest effort he's not learning to not freak, then I'd start getting concerned :comfortand bring it up to his doctor. But really, they'd probably send you to a specialist who will have you do similar exercises to teach him that it's okay when Mommy is not in sight.

[Shar]

Just to give an account, I have a mild metopic dd who is now almost 21 moths old. She was born with a metopic ridge and no trigonocephally. She is advanced in all areas of development, especially speech.

[*jules*]

Debbie, sorry your having some worries about Henry's progress slowing down. Not to belittle your concerns in anyway, but it sounds like he's doing things that would have me jumping for joy. Of course, that's mainly because Alex has been behind for a while now...if he had been advanced or on target and then began slowing, I'd worry too. It's what we do as parents. I agree that with him focusing on walking, the rest may have been put on the back burner...less of a priority for him right now. I'd say as long as he is doing some new things each month (it's all about progress), try not to worry so much. Let him master the walking and then see what happens. Hugs and keep us posted :)

Sharla. I was giggling the whole time I read your post. I can just picture it and it does sound a lot like what I do (except I'm leaving the room because it's really necessary). I do talk to him the entire time, in my cheeriest voice (sometimes THAT is hard, lol) and smile and say "see, mommy came right back". I do tend to pick him up and cuddle him tho...guess I should ease off on that. I'm gonna work on this starting today. How often should I do this....once evey 15mins...once every 30...??? Sorry for so many questions. Lately, you've become my parenting mentor, lol :) Thanks for everything!

[Debbied]

Thanks for the words of support Julie, I think because he has been doing so well that it is just so odd to see him slow down a little. I think the one thing that actually gives me comfort being in the "wait and see" category is knowing that he is doing well developmentally. It literally keeps me from hyperventilating about the whole thing some days as I am sure you can all relate too! I will keep you guys up to date on how he does. In 5 weeks he will have his 12 mos. appt with ped and also his craniofacial dr. re-check.

Thanks,
Debbie

[Shar]

Julie ~ :adore! I'd think if you do it like, three times a day??? You could do it more often as he's tolerating it, ya know? Push to the point where he's learning, but don't push too much where it becomes more than he can handle. Choose your battles carefully, and strike a balance between pushing without exasperating. I guess that's my parenting style in a nutshell, lol! Glad my crazy thoughts could help a little!

[momoftwo]

Logan's speech therapist said that she thought Logan had PTSD from a traumatic separation experience- probably during one of the many tests she had. I actually had to go to therapy with Logan for a little over three months- they usually don't allow parents to come in, except for maybe a couple of times until the child gets more comfortable and used to being with the therapist. Anyway, they made an exception for Logan. They just couldn't handle her- she screamed, cried, was shaking...and never would calm down- 2 min or 20 min it was the same. After about three and a half months they tried again and Logan cried, but she was able to be distracted for a minute or two. That went on for a few weeks and then she got to a point that she would go right back with her therapist, Ms. Val. (And I should add that her therapist is the ONLY one she would/will do this with. She obviously came to trust her- but she is still the same with other people.) Her therapist gave me some info on PTSD from traumatic separation experiences and basically it said that you have to be really patient with them...and just deal with it. Take baby steps- a min at time, with you in sight at first then just walking away briefly..and to be very reassuring.."mommy is right here" "mommy will be right back", etc... Logan asked and cried for me a lot during therapy, but the therapist was always very comforting and reassuring, "Mommy is right outside. Logan plays with Ms. Val and then we will go see mommy."
Logan still won't go in the church nursery, or anywhere else without me- and relies on me for everything to comfort her- not dad- but now that I know that I know why she is still so frightened when I leave, I have a ton more patience with it. Not saying it is easy, but I know that she WILL eventually outgrow it. And, Logan will play by herself in her room or another room without me in it now. Baby steps...
Good luck with Alex!

[Shar]

...I think the one thing that actually gives me comfort being in the "wait and see" category is knowing that he is doing well developmentally. It literally keeps me from hyperventilating about the whole thing some days as I am sure you can all relate too!

Debbie, that's exactly how I feel! I am sorry for those sweet little kiddos that are experiencing delays. I don't know if I could handle the not knowing if it's cranio related or not! :grouphug But as Lauren said, the treatment is the same no matter what the cause! There are such great testing and resources available to every child in the US, I believe it's through NCLB (No Child Left Behind), but if someone feels their child needs help, as your pedi where to go in your state.

[Lara]

If your community has Parents As Teachers (http://www.parentsasteachers.org/site/pp.asp?c=ekIRLcMZJxE&b=272091), they should be able to help as well. They can get you screenings and more assistance based on a wide range of needs and keep everything in perspective (looking at the whole child - not just speech or other delays in isolation). A friend of mine qualified for extensive speech therapy (for free) for her son, and you wouldn't even know he ever had a problem now. I know it's different with the cranio, but I love our Parents as Teachers visits. Good luck!

[*jules*]

we also have PAT and love it!!!

[three.little.boys]

in quintin's case, I know for a fact that his metopic/trigon shape was causing issues. He could sit up well since 5 months old, but until the day of surgery at 10 mos old he would randomly topple over like he was losing his balence. My DH and i were like, "how are we going to deal with him falling over and losing balance after skull surgery?" (he would also crawl and bang his head into things over and over like his depth perception was not good)...He was my 3rd boy...none of my other sons did this!

Well, to our suprise, he never did it ONCE post surgery. I can only speak for my own experience, but I am convinced that Quintin's head shape was affecting functions in his little brain.

[mv3kids]

Stijn's development slowed down significantly when he was 6 months and came to a stop (for 3 months) when he was 9 months. He could sit up well when he was 9,5 months but still lost his balance easily. He's now 2,5 and has cognitive delays but his speech is right on track. He also probably has problems with a short attention span, likely hindering his cognitive development, but we don't have an official report of his development yet...
I'm convinced it's all related to his metopic cranio but I don't know if it's caused by the trigon shape or the poor headgrowth when he was a baby.

[yannario]

Hey Julie - I just read your story. My son was diagnosed with metopic cranio about a month ago. He looks very similar to your son. I am reading your story and it parallels with mine. Everything that you wrote is exactly what I was thinking and feeling. I couldn't stop crying for the first week. I emailed Dr. Fearon my story and pictures of Matthew. He says it looks like Matthew has a moderate form and would recommend the surgery. I don't want to do the surgery but I know in my heart it is the right thing to do. The surgery and the recovery will be the worse part. Any advice? How is Alex now? Did the swelling scare him? My son is 12 months old and we just found out. I am so scared that they are going to ruin my perfect little boy. He has a great personality and is really cute. I am dreading seeing him lying in the hospital and I can't take the pain away.

[*jules*]

Yannario - First, I'd llike say hello and welcome you to CK. I'm so happy you found this site. It truely saved me while waiting for Alex's surgery. The ladies on here are more than amazing...glad you're here :)

I also want to say how sorry I am that you are facing this diagnosis and surgery. I'll never forget the moment I first heard that Alex had craniosynostosis...the disbelief, fear, and then panic set in when I realized that none of the docs in my area were specialized in this type of surgery. I became obsessed with learing all I could about cranio and the surgery, not to mention different surgical teams. I also emailed dr. fearon in my paniced state and was very reassured by his response. He was also kind enough to "diagnose" Alex from photos I emailed allowing me to cancel the local CT scan we had scheduled. I'm glad you emailed him and got his opinion. I'd love to see some pics of your little Matthew if you can get some uploaded (I haven't checked out your profile yet, but will do so after this reply). Dr. Fearon also catagorized Alex as moderate metopic, so it seems we have some things in common. I was also scared to go thru with surgery, but knew in my heart that it was the best thing for Alex....I'm so glad I did now and if you looked at his before and after photos, the change is amazing! I'm curious why it took so long (12mos) before your son was diagnosed? Has he already had a CT scan ?

I'm also wondering where you're from and if you have a great cranio team available to you?

As for surgery, I'll be honest and say that the months we waited for his surgery day to approach, were one of the hardest parts of our journey. Your mind does A LOT of thinking and fearing the worst when you have so much time on your hands. The pre-ops and surgery day weren't as bad as I had anticipated. I was confident in our surgeon and confident that Alex would do just as well as the other kids I'd had the pleasure of "knowing" who had surgery before him. I actually slept some and before I knew it, we got the call saying that they were closing Alex's incision and we could see him in the PICU in about 20mins (now those 20 mins seemed even longer than the 4hrs we waited during the surgery). Seeing him that first time, whew...it was such a strange mixture of emotions. I was so elated that he was out of surgery and his forehead looked amazing even at that point. But, then seeing him so out of it and knowing what was to come, it was hard. I don't know if all the swelling was more frightening to him or me. I knew to expect it, but even so, it's differnt when it's YOUR child. He was pretty fussy but dr. fearon didn't feel he was in pain so he got ativan, which is an anti-anxiety med and it did wonders for him. We only spent two nights in the hospital (longest 2 nights of my life, lol), but looking back, I can't belive how fast he recovered. Matthew will be just as amazing, please take some comfort in that.

As for Alex now, he's fantastic. He is a little behind developmentally and has some extreme separation anxiety issues, but no one wants to say for sure that it's due to his cranio :dunno Non-cranio kids also have these issues sometimes, so who knows?

Please let me know if I can help in any way. I'm here for you :)

[piper]

Just an update on Nicholas. He was metopic, has had a ridge since he was 3 mos old and told by his doc and Dr. Fearon to hang out, wait and stop worrying... that there was no trigon. He's now 10 mos old and doing well developmentally. He's not really speaking too much. (he was copying everything we said at 2-3 mos, then stopped, which I was concerned about, but now is starting to make words again-- but they all start with "b" along with different vowel sounds so I'm cool with that). Other than that, he's pulling up, cruising, crawling, picking little objects up, playing with items in usual and creative ways, eating well, laughing, has some teeth and is not afraid to use them, and generally an all around wonderfully happy little 10 mo old. I'll keep giving updates from one who was not recommended surgery as time goes on, and hopefully they will continue to be positive, and also might help put some people's minds at ease.
-piper

[donnamilliezac]

Sadie, Zac was exactly the same with his balance he would just be standing there and fall over, since surgery i don't think i've seen him stumble once, in fact he's almost running at times with no problems at all.

i am concerned about his speech, he understands everything he is being told but is not yet saying very much, he has a fews works like da, ball, boy, dog but has also lost some of the words he used to say, and the words he does say aren't complete he can't say the endings - i dont know if this is cranio related or if he's just a bit slow a talking plus the lip tied issue?

[*jules*]

Hi Piper. So great to hear from you. I'm glad that Nicholas is doing so well and remains in the "wait and see" category. Sounds like he is a typical, active 10mo old...congrats :) Thanks for the update.

[Mindy]

Hi Piper!! Thanks for the update. It sounds like Nicholas is doing fabulous. Its not uncommon for certain behaviors to go away when babies are working on other skills. Try not to worry about his language. It will come with time.

[mrs j]

Glad to hear things are improving. My Bradley had balance and talking issues prior to surgery, i know definately that it was due to his head shape because within a week of surgery being done, his speech was amazing, total turn around and no more falls or balance issues.xxxxx