WWYD (BR)

fitnessgirl630 · August 2011

At Nate's 6 mo. check up (well a few days before he turned 7 mo. actually) I was reccommended by his pedi to get an ultrasound for his head due to 'head circumfrence being in the 80th percentile'. She asked me if H has a big head which he does and she assured me it was probably familial and most likely not a problem but she would like to be conservative and get one anyway. She also told me Nate is extremely bright so she didn't suspect anything. I asked her if there was another reason besides head size that lead her to suspect a problem and she said no. She also told me she orders one once a month?! for her patients with big heads so it's a common concern.

Ok, then why the heck do I need to put my baby through this? He has reached all his milestones early both physically and emotionally. He makes amazing eye contact and is quite interactive with people. Also it's not covered by insurance and would cost thousands of dollars. I've talked to friends who've had babies w big heads and they were never told this although their children are older so maybe it's a new thing. For the record he's always had a large head and the nogan is 45.5 cm at 7 mo. if you're interested.

What do you guys think?

amelianguy · August 2011

I would get a second opinion first. See another pedi and ask if they concur with the recommendation. If they do, then I would get it done. Regardless of cost, i would rather have it done and have peace of mind. If the other pedi says he/she doesn't think it's necessary, then I would probably wait and revisit it again at his 9 month appointment.

tdmd09 · August 2011

Personally if he's reaching developmental milestones and it's not covered by insurance, I would pass on the ultrasound for now and just see how he does on subsequent visits. It doesn't sound like there are any other concerns, and that's a lot of money to shell out to hopefully confirm he's totally normal.

mz_zane · August 2011

Wow, I've never heard of that. If thats really recommended, Phoenix is long overdue as she's always been above the 80% for head circumference. My pediatrician never seemed concerned about it (and yes, my H has a big head too). I would DEFINITELY get a second opinion. I also agree, if he seems to be reaching milestones, or doesn't seem to be showing any sort of cognitive difficulties or have any other concerning symptoms, I would probably pass. Did she say what the ultrasound would be looking for?

MBMcC421 · August 2011

amelianguy:
I would get a second opinion first. See another pedi and ask if they concur with the recommendation. If they do, then I would get it done. Regardless of cost, i would rather have it done and have peace of mind. If the other pedi says he/she doesn't think it's necessary, then I would probably wait and revisit it again at his 9 month appointment.

Agree.

fitnessgirl630 · August 2011

Thanks for the imput ladies... She mentioned hydroencephelitus (pardon the spelling) or water on the brain. She admitted she's 95 percent sure he doesn't have it because he has no symptoms. From what I've read online these children have heads that all of a sudden get larger (from average to off the charts) or have developmental delays. Also he's in the 60th for length and his head has consistantly been 70th to 80th throughout his check ups. I think I will get a 2nd opinion andor wait until his 9 month check up. She's always been super conservative (hospital told me it was ok to BF on low dose of prozac but she told me she thought it wasn't a good idea)

ChristinaDawn · August 2011

I agree with what the others have said. I would either get a second opinion or wait until the 9 month check up, especially because he has no other symptoms and has always been this way. We had two ultrasounds done on Alex's hips, one when he was a month old and the other at 3 months but this was only because he was frank breech and it's common for breech babies to have hip dysplasia, which thankfully Alex did not have. He also had no symptoms, but they wanted to be sure and the American Pediatric Society suggests all breech babies have the ultrasound done as it's easier to correct when they're younger than when they're older. It was also covered by our insurance so that wasn't a concern and it was good to have the piece of mind.

melpfaff · August 2011

I am not a mom, but completely agree with what MB and Amelia said. When I was a baby, I had a large head and my doctors were concerned. I still kind of had a big head/but it caught up. My mother was a single mother with crappy health insurance and ran all kinds of tests and wracked up debt and it turned out I was fine. The 1st doctor said I would have delays. I learned to read when I was 3 and was early or on time with all milestones.

If the 2nd doctor recommends having the tests done, see if there was a way insurance will cover it. My insurance wasn't going to cover a 2nd MRI last year, and my dr. found a way to get it by the way she worded the results and included my family history, etc. May be worth if a shot if another Dr. thinks so.

fitnessgirl630 · August 2011

melpfaff:

I am not a mom, but completely agree with what MB and Amelia said. When I was a baby, I had a large head and my doctors were concerned. I still kind of had a big head/but it caught up. My mother was a single mother with crappy health insurance and ran all kinds of tests and wracked up debt and it turned out I was fine. The 1st doctor said I would have delays. I learned to read when I was 3 and was early or on time with all milestones.

If the 2nd doctor recommends having the tests done, see if there was a way insurance will cover it. My insurance wasn't going to cover a 2nd MRI last year, and my dr. found a way to get it by the way she worded the results and included my family history, etc. May be worth if a shot if another Dr. thinks so.

This is great to hear! Thank you for sharing Mel:)

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