Title: Head Tilt (Torticollis) - HealthyChildren.org
Headings: Head Tilt (Torticollis)
Head Tilt (Torticollis)
Acquired torticollis (due to injury or inflammation)
Congenital muscular torticollis
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Healthy Children > Health Issues > Conditions > Cleft & Craniofacial > Head Tilt (Torticollis)
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Head Tilt (Torticollis)
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​Head tilt is a condition that causes a child to hold her head or neck in a twisted or otherwise abnormal position. She may lean her head toward one shoulder and, when lying on her stomach, always turn the same side of her face toward the mattress. This can cause her head to flatten on one side and her face to appear uneven or out of line. If not treated, head tilt may lead to permanent facial deformity or unevenness and to restricted head movement. Most cases of head tilt are associated with a condition called torticollis, although in rare instances a head tilt can be due to other causes such as hearing loss, misalignment of the eyes, reflux (a flowing back of stomach acid into the esophagus), a throat or lymph node infection, or, very uncommonly, a brain tumor. Acquired torticollis (due to injury or inflammation)
This is more likely to occur in older children, up to the age of nine or ten. This type of torticollis usually results from an inflammation of the throat caused by an upper respiratory infection, a sore throat, an injury, or some unknown factor. The swelling, for reasons still not known, causes the tissues surrounding the upper spine to loosen, allowing the vertebral bones to move out of normal position. When this happens, the neck muscles go into spasm, causing the head to tilt to one side. Onset of this condition is typically sudden and very painful.