Intervention Strategies Utilized in a Plan of Care of a Young Infant with a Typical Presentation of Congenital Muscular Torticollis: A Retrospective Case Report

Congenital muscular torticollis (CMT) is one of the most common musculoskeletal deformities in newborns that can lead to secondary developmental implications. Conservative treatment with physical therapy services is common. The 2018 clinical practice guideline by the American Physical Therapy Association Academy of Pediatric Physical Therapy describes first choice interventions for the management CMT with kinesiotape as a supplemental intervention. However, the evidence and benefits of the use of kinesiotape for torticollis lacks. The aim of this retrospective case report is to describe the application of kinesiotape with other therapeutic interventions utilized in the plan of care of a young infant with a typical presentation of torticollis. Case Description: The patient was a young female infant with a diagnosis of CMT with positional plagiocephaly. The infant presented with a significant preference for cervical left lateral flexion and right rotation with a nodule at the left sternocleidomastoid muscle. Outcomes: An estimated 10% improvement was observed in cervical right lateral flexion and left rotation range of motion with a visible decrease in redness and in the nodule. Additionally, the infant acquired rolling and sitting skills though a left sided preference remained. Discussion: This retrospective case report discusses the lack of research regarding kinesiotape as in intervention and describes its application in addition to other therapeutic interventions for the plan of care of an infant with CMT. Future research is needed to investigate the therapeutic effects of kinesiotape on the trunk in conjunction with conservative interventions. A longer duration of the plan of care is recommended