Helmets and head shape

If unevenness doesn't improve with the help of repositioning by age 6 months or your baby is older than 8 months and has a severe deformity, your baby's doctor might prescribe a molded helmet to help shape your baby's head. A custom-fitted helmet relieves pressure on the flattened side of your baby's head.

Molded helmets are most effective when treatment begins between ages 4 and 12 months, when the skull is still malleable and the brain is growing rapidly. Treatment with a molded helmet isn't likely to be effective after age 1, when the skull bones are fused together and head growth becomes less rapid.