Factors related to the treatment duration of infants with congenital muscular torticollis

Abstract

Objective: Congenital muscular torticollis (CMT) is a disease with abnormal head and neck posture in infants. It affects the child's movement and development and can lead to complications. Therefore, this study aims to find out what factors influence the rehabilitation treatment duration of infants with CMT. Design: Cross-sectional study. Methods: The subjects were 63 infants under 90 days of age who were diagnosed with CMT. Age, thickness of the sternocleido-mastoid muscle (SCM) on the affected and non-affected side, head tilt angle, and head rotation angle of the affected head in infants were collected. The ratio of muscle thickness was calculated from the thickness of the affected SCM and the thickness of the non-affected SCM (A/N ratio). All subjects underwent conservative physical therapy twice a week for 30 minutes, and the end of the treatment was when the angle of head tilt was normal or less than 5 degrees, and the treatment duration was calculated. Results: Age, thickness of affected SCM, and head tilt were significantly correlated with treatment duration (p<0.05). The thickness of the non-affected SCM, A/N ratio, and head rotation angle did not show any correlation with treatment duration. The factors affecting the treatment duration were head tilt and age, showing 21% explanatory power of adjusted R 2. Conclusions: The main factors affecting the treatment duration of infants with CMT are head tilt and age. Therefore, more attention should be directed to the infant's head tilt and age for effective physical therapy of infants with CMT.