Sometime in the past week or so I read an article in The London Times about
a woman with twin girls. One of the infants had "craniosynostosis" or
"craniostenosis". Normally, a baby is born with a skull which is not solid,
but a collection of smaller bones that come together at sites known as
sutures (we all know of the "soft spot"--but there are less noticible ones
as well). As the brain grows, the sutures allow for rapid expansion in a
symmetrical fashion. That is why we measure infant head circumference on a
regular basis. As the brain grows, and expands, the baby's head gets larger
and takes shape. Infants born with fused sutures can become disfigured, as
the brain is prevented from symmetrical growth.

Anyway, The Times reported on the problems this mother faced in trying to
find a physician who could diagnose the problem (several physicians
discounted her concerns). Since the other twin was unaffected I
gather the problem was more noticible than usual. Apparently there are only
a few regional centers in the U.K. that perform the delicate neurosurgery
required. Maybe one of you has the paper edition of The Times lying about
and can check out the statistics for us--I remember being struck by the
number of infants cited as being affected with this condition. It seemed
very high.

On the other hand, this is a condition an infant is born with--I don't think
sleep position has any effect.

Speaking of back to sleep...I think I will go!

Margery Wilson, IBCLC
Cambridge, Massachusetts
USA where it is 11:15 PM