12 Nov LESSON: Baby T’s Clicky Hip Journey

At My Favourite Physio, we see many babies for the assessment and treatment of “clicky hips” or Developmental Dysplasia of the Hips (DDH). 👶🏻

6-month-old Baby T 👶🏻, was born breech and had been checked at birth for DDH. His parents were advised to have an Ultrasound scan done to check his hips when he reached 6 weeks old. Unfortunately Baby T’s ultrasound results were lost in the system within the local hospital, and despite repeated calls to follow up by his mother, the family had not heard back from the hospital.🤔

2 months later, the hospital rang to say that his Ultrasound results indicated a problem. His GP, promptly referred them to a Paediatrician but it was a 2-month wait! A repeat ultrasound at 5.5 months showed that Baby T’s left hip was not formed 😱normally and he was referred to My Favourite Physio for urgent treatment of the left hip dysplasia.

At almost 6 months old, fortunately, we are still able to fit him into a Pavlik Harness to treat his left DDH. The best treatment for Baby T is 6 weeks of 24/7 harnessing. He was seen weekly at Physiotherapy for harness adjustments to accommodate his growth. After 6 weeks, ultrasound scans indicated a corrected normal left hip.🎉

Unfortunately, at My Favourite Physio, we’ve seen many babies who have shallow hips that are being missed. When babies with shallow hips are not being correctly diagnosed and treated, they will likely still be able to walk at 2 years old, but they will very likely suffer from hip pain as an adult in their 20s and have arthritis in their hips by 40.😳

So, one lesson we can learn from Baby T’s story is that if your baby has had an Ultrasound scan for his/her hips at 6 weeks old, follow up on it persistently.💪

One things you can do, if you are
unsure or worried about your baby’s 👶🏻Ultrasound results is that you can ring My Favourite Physio on (02) 9790 4233 to speak to our Paediatric Physiotherapist about your baby’s hips. We offer a 15 min FREE 📱 phone consult to discuss your concerns about your baby’s hips, because we believe it is not acceptable that babies with shallow hips are still missing out on the correct treatment!