Neonatal osteopath: why do a check-up on the newborn?
A visit to the neonatal osteopath is not part of the hospital routine, but it is really important and essential for the newborn and his parents.
Find out how neonatal osteopathy can help your baby and what it consists of by continuing to read the article.
Before starting, I'll leave you some useful information:
- If you would like to schedule a studio visit with me, you can find me here.
- You can also find me on Instagram with the profile @drsilva.com_official
- In the video courses section you will find how to promote the psychomotor development of the newborn.
Who is the neonatal osteopath?
The pediatric osteopath is a professional figure recognized by the National Health System who uses delicate and gentle techniques on newborns to resolve some problems.
It is common to think that joint or muscle problems can only affect people from a certain age onwards, but this is not the case.
In fact, the baby due to bad positioning in the belly or difficult births, can experience tensions or contractures. These can lead to other problems that can be prevented through a check-up in the first period of the baby's life.
Why is it important?
The check-up visit represents the Gold Standard to allow your child to develop at a motor and postural level in the best way.
In fact, as we have said, the neonatal osteopath is able to identify problems relating to the musculoskeletal system (muscles and joints), the visceral system (stomach and intestine) and the nervous system .
Therefore, it intervenes on these through gentle manipulative techniques to improve joint mobility, muscle tissue and visceral tension.
Noticing these problems in the first days of the baby's life allows us to prevent complications that we will see in the next chapters. In fact, several European countries have included the Neonatal Osteopath in hospitals to ensure the presence of this figure already in the first days of the baby's life. Unfortunately, in Italy they are present only in very few hospitals and as volunteers.
Parents and Osteopath United for the Child
I always want to say that the check-up is not only based on the verification and resolution of possible contractures or tensions, but also requires the involvement of the parents .
In fact, they are always provided with instructions, postural recommendations and activities to present to the little one.
The work of the osteopath combined with the attention of the parent helps the child to develop to his maximum potential.
The check-up visit for optimal development of the newborn
It is good to know that in the first 3 years of a child's life 80% of the brain develops and the foundations are laid for the well-being and psycho-physical development of the person he will become.
This means that we are talking about an absolutely fantastic, but also very delicate, time window.
The WHO (World Health Organization) has decided to draw up a document of global importance on nursing care for early childhood development (“ Nurturing care for early childhood development ”).
It is based on 5 components:
- Adequate nutrition;
- Good health;
- Early learning opportunities;
- Protection and security;
- Responsive parenting.
Where does the neonatal osteopath fit in?
It is part of the component dedicated to the good health of the child because it intervenes from the first days as support for the initiation of breastfeeding (in conjunction with the midwife) and as prevention and treatment of neonatal problems.
Unfortunately, as we said before, the osteopath is not present in the hospitals. Therefore, parents must bring their child privately for a check-up.
But this expense must be seen as an investment in his well-being because treatment has a cost, but prevention is priceless.
What does a visit to the neonatal osteopath consist of?
The check-up visit with the neonatal osteopath in the first days of the baby's life allows to verify possible contractures or tensions at the joint and muscular level.
Therefore, the osteopath performs visual and palpatory assessments to discover if there are any problems due to misplacements or complicated parts. If present, the extent and timing of resolution will be assessed and osteopathic treatments will be planned.
Even if the child does not have an obvious problem, in addition to manual treatment , parents are provided with important information such as:
- Postural measures for the child;
- Activities to promote its development;
- Practical advice.
I decided to make this information always accessible by recording it in my video course “ From ZERO To Hero ® ” to accompany the newborn from birth (ZERO) to walking (HERO).
What problems is it going to prevent or solve?
The osteopath intervenes on neonatal problems related to tension and muscle contractures, but let's see in detail what they can be.
Myogenic Torticollis
Myogenic torticollis is very common in newborn babies and consists of more or less marked contractures of the neck muscles .
Unfortunately, it is an underdiagnosed problem and if left untreated it can lead to problems with breastfeeding and postural problems. Therefore, consequences may include the presence of asymmetries in the spinal column and the risk of developing plagiocephaly. In fact, the child tends to keep his head always turned to the same side causing constant pressure only on one side of the skull.
Sucking and breastfeeding problems
As we have seen, stiff neck can affect breastfeeding , but not only that. In fact, contractures or tension in the jaw and mouth muscles can also make latching on and sucking difficult.
In these cases, the pediatric osteopath has the task of relaxing the muscles of the mouth to improve opening and attachment to the breast.
Positional plagiocephaly
Incorrect postures or contractures can cause the baby to keep his head always turned to the same side. Since the newborn's skull is highly malleable, this continuous pressure only on one side would determine the appearance of positional plagiocephaly.
It is possible to prevent it through a check-up visit with an osteopath in the first days of the child's life and following my advice. In fact, in the first case, contractures such as myogenic torticollis will be evaluated and resolved; in the second, parents will be able to contribute to the postural development of the child.
Working on prevention is one of my missions and that's why I included in the video course " Bye bye flat head " all the information to avoid this problem.