Palliative care describes an approach to care for those who are living with a life-limiting illness (an illness that cannot be cured), their family and carers. Palliative care does not mean you are immediately dying; rather it is defined as when treatment will no longer ‘cure’ or ‘fully heal’ your illness. Active treatment may still be undertaken to help relieve your symptoms and sometimes slow disease progression. You may be confronted by the idea of being referred to a palliative care service, however in most cases, early referral is appropriate and beneficial to improve quality of life.

Gross motor development involves learning the motor skills that allow an infant to move and explore their environment. This includes developing motor skills such as reaching for toys, rolling, sitting, crawling and walking. Young children will then add to these skills by improving their balance, learning how to run, jump, climb and participate in many aspects of life.  

Developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH) is the term used to describe the condition where the femoral head (ball) has an abnormal relationship to the acetabulum (socket). This can range from a severe dislocated hip where the ball is not in contact with the socket; to a stable hip with a shallow acetabulum (socket). Good hips to start out life are very important. If the hip joints have not developed properly when a baby takes its first steps, the scenario may be set for hip troubles later in life.

Torticollis is a term used for a ‘twisted neck’ or ‘turned head’. It can occur for several reasons, and results in the baby holding their head in a tilted and turned position. Torticollis should be managed with your paediatric physiotherapist who will give you exercises to complete at home, and to monitor your progress. 

Developmental coordination disorder (DCD) occurs in approximately 1 in 10 Australian children. Children with the disorder have delays in gross and fine motor skills and poor balance. These movement problems can affect the child’s education and performance of everyday tasks. Paediatric physiotherapists design treatments that are individualised to meet the child’s goals and specific problems. 

Neurological conditions are conditions that affect the brain, nerves and muscles. In children, they cover a wide range of diseases and disorders affecting the developing brain of the unborn or newborn child, traumatic and acquired brain injury in children and adolescents, and degenerative disorders that become apparent in childhood when gross motor milestones are not met or there is regression in already developed skills. Some of these conditions are relatively common, others are very rare.

‘Plagiocephaly’ is a term for a misshapen head in infants. This occurs in approximately 20 per cent of infants at seven weeks of age. Plagiocephaly occurs because babies’ heads are very soft, and flat spots can happen when they spend long periods of time with their heads resting in the same position. This is usually managed with repositioning and plenty of supervised awake ‘tummy time’.  While plagiocephaly does not affect babies’ development, it can alter the appearance of their face and head.