A study done by Bercik et al. in 2019 decided to look at this question. They actually found in studying 2519 infants, that the group of infants with torticollis had a significantly higher rate of reflux compared to those without. Infants with reflux tend to tilt their heads away from the pain in their tummy or to the right side and arch backwards. Depending upon which side is affected with torticolis, the infant will tilt their head to the same side as the torticolis and turn their heads to the opposite side. You need to talk to your pediatrician about the best ways to manage reflux. To help with your infant's torticolis, a pediatric physiotherapist (physical therapist) will help you with massage of the area, prolonged stretching, positioning, ways to carrying your infant, tummy time strategies, strengthening the opposite side and helping with any developmental delays as a result of the torticollis. Remember the sooner you are seen by a pediatric physiotherapist, the less time it will take in treatment and the torticollis itself will have less severe impacts overall. If you are in the Montreal area and are in need of a pediatric physiotherapist contact me at janethale@pacephysio.com or at my website at www.pacephysio.com.
