DDH is an acronym for Developmental Dysplasia of the Hip. There are several ranges of severity of it. For example, in milder cases the thighbone (known as a femur) is allowed to move slightly within the socket due to ligaments and soft tissue not forming a firm hold onto it. The more extreme case, such as an example with our daughter, will allow the femur to move out of the socket all together. Children who are born with DDH may not even have a hip socket and the femur bone may try to form one for it self higher up on the hip bone. This requires surgery to correct to get the femur back in its proper position. A spica cast is normally used to hold it in the proper position.
Symptoms for a baby are:
A loose feeling within the hip as the leg is moved.
One leg appearing shorter than the other
Extra folds of skin on one side of the inner groin area (This can happen with both if both are affected).
One hip moves differently from the other.
If you feel that your child has any of these symptoms, you should contact your pediatrician as soon as possible. The earlier this is caught, the easier it is to correct.
Keeping your child entertained and happy while in a spica cast can sometimes be difficult. The fact that most babies are very mobile and all over the place at the age that our daughter had her spica cast on, it was just unnatural for her to be semi-immobile. However, there are several things that we have seen other parents do online and some of the toys we have used to keep Natalie busy.
We have seen some parents with children who have created or found special desks. They are typically wider, and look similar to coffee tables where they can sit in a bean bag or umbrella chair to play with their toys.
Another popular type of toy for a child in a spica cast would be those that the child can ride on. Most are designed in ways that are not obstructing from sitting on it while in a cast.
We also have seen a mother who had a nice blown-up ball pit. Their daughter was able to sit in it in her bean bag chair and play. They said that it worked really well for their child.
Keep in mind that most children who are old enough to crawl will quickly learn that they can pull themselves along to different places in the house when they want to. Putting things down low that they enjoy playing with will help them feel more independent. Just keep in mind not to allow them to play with toys that can fit down into the spica cast. You should always keep a lookout for items that could potentially fall down into their cast. Also remember to keep clothing on them to help prevent that.
