Accordingly, the patient was a boy nearly 4 months old, from the Central region. The family noticed that the child's head shape had unusual signs, so they took him for screening. Through examination and diagnosis, doctors determined that the child had a sticky joint along the middle skull, causing deformation of the boat's head, extending along the front and rear axles.
MSc. Dr. Nguyen Ngoc Pi Doanh - Children's Hospital 2 Ho Chi Minh City said that in cases of simple skull joints, children under 6 months old can undergo surgery using the non-invasive skull joint cutting method with endoscopy assist. Meanwhile, older children (usually after 9 months) will need surgery to reconstruct the entire skull arch.
Previously, endoscopic surgery has not been widely deployed because after surgery, children need to wear a head-shaped helmet, a type of equipment not yet available in Vietnam. However, currently, there are domestic units specializing in the production of see-through hats with modern technology, with a much lower cost than treatment abroad, making the minimalist invasion method feasible and suitable.
The surgery took about 1.5 hours, with two small surgeries about 4 cm. The team completely removed the sticking skull joint, and expanded the skull arch to the sides, creating space for the brain to develop and helping the skull reshape over time.
According to Dr. Pi Doanh, pathological cranial articular surgery with endoscopy support is a common trend in the world in the treatment of facial deformities. This method has many advantages such as less intervention, small surgical paths, less impact on the skull, short surgical and hospitalization time, reducing the risk of blood loss and allowing intervention at an early age, thereby optimizing long-term aesthetic efficiency and nerve function.
After surgery, children need to wear an orthope to support the balanced development of the skull.
According to Dr. Pi Doanh, warts and crooked heads are common in Vietnam. In addition to the cause of cranial joint stiffness, many cases started from posture but have not been detected and intervene promptly. hesitation can cause children to miss the "golden time" for treatment, usually from 4-10 months old.
After 1 year, the treatment's effectiveness often decreases significantly. Therefore, when detecting signs of head deformities in their children, parents should take their children for early examination and screening to get the most appropriate treatment direction.
