The trained health care provider will perform different maneuvers to be sure that the hips are in proper positions. Although ultrasound can be used to detect this condition, it is just as reliable to have the baby screened by a doctor. Obviously, a screening is more time and money efficient. According to the article, “Clinical Practice Guidelines: Early Detection of Developmental Dysplasia of the Hip,” written by a large group of people, mainly pedestrians, gives a few facts and statistics about DDH and who is at risk:
DDH is not always detectable at birth, but some newborn screening surveys suggest and incidence as high as 1 in 100 newborns with evidence of instability, and 1 to 1.5 cases of dislocation per 1000 newborns. The incidence of DDH is higher in girls. Girls are especially susceptible to the maternal hormone relaxin, which may contribute to ligamentous laxity with the resultant instability of the hip. The left hip is involved 3 times as commonly as the right hip, perhaps related to the left occiput anterior positioning of most non-breech newborns. In this position, the left hip resides posteriorly against the mother’s spine, potentially limiting abduction. …show more content…
My parents were told that my left hip was dislocated, which could have become dislocated during birth. To begin treatment I was put into a body cast from my hips down to my toes and I had to lie flat on my back in my crib with weights hanging from the foot of the cast to aid in setting the hip properly. Since I was still a baby, my mom said it wasn’t torturous for me to remain flat on my back for that long period of time. I had to remain that cast for _______________. The second step after the body cast was five weeks in