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NCT Number: NCT05848895

OPT-IN: Osteopathic Plagiocephaly Treatment for Infants and Neonates

The goal of this crossover randomized clinical trial is to assess the effects of osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) compared to standard of care repositioning in children diagnosed with positional/deformational plagiocephaly. The main hypothesis is that children who received OMT will show significantly improved anthropometric measures of cranial symmetry over those receiving the current pediatric standard of care of repositioning.

This is a two-arm, randomized cross-over clinical trial. With parental consent, pediatric patients (infants <4 months of age) will be organized into one of two groups:

1. Those who receive OMT with emphasis on osteopathic cranial manipulative medicine (OCMM) to restore cranial symmetry. 2. Those who receive standard care only with repositioning attention from the parents After 8-weeks of being in the first group, each participant will cross-over into the second group (OMT or repositioning) N = 122 subjects diagnosed with deformational plagiocephaly (DP) are to be recruited (to allow for natural attrition and loss to follow up) with the recruitment to continue until 61 patients have been placed in each of the two groups and will cross-over to the respective treatment group (OMT and standard of care repositioning therapy).

Timeline: It is projected that to recruit and carry out the assessments and interventions (8-weeks of each group with 12-months of follow-up longitudinally), it will require two years (24-months) from the beginning of the study to completion.

Recruiting

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Key information

Age range

1 day–4 month

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: No

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusions:

  • Diagnosed with positional plagiocephaly
  • Under 4-months of age (between birth - 4 months) at the time of enrollment

Exclusions:

  • Preterm birth (<37 weeks)
  • Genetic syndromes
  • Craniofacial defects/deformities (e.g. cleft lip/palate)
  • Brachycephaly/scaphocephaly
  • Hypotonia
  • Hypertonia
  • Craniosynostosis
  • Head trauma or other neurological illnesses
  • Lost to follow up
  • Patient whose parents (or legal guardians) disagree to attend 8-treatments of OMT and 2 additional measurement sessions
  • Prior helmet therapy, physical therapy, or OMT before the date of enrollment

Treatment and study plan

Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment

Procedure

Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment is a manual treatment therapy applied by licensed physicians that consists of using ones hands to improve the structure and function of the body. In this situation it will involve gentle and passive modalities that are well-tolerated by infants.

Standard of Care Repositioning

Behavioral

Parents will receive standardized handouts/materials instructing on repositioning intended to help improve head shape in infants with plagiocephaly.

Primary outcomes

  1. Cranial Vault Asymmetry Index

    Time frame: 2 years

    Anthropometric measurement of cranial asymmetry

  2. Head circumference

    Time frame: 2 years

    Standard growth parameter measured in infants

  3. Weight

    Time frame: 2 years

    Standard growth parameter measured in infants

Secondary outcomes

  1. Medical history

    Time frame: 12 months

    Patients charts will be reviewed after first year of life to assess for medical issues including otitis media, developmental delay, allergic rhinitis, vision problems, torticollis, hospitalizations, need for a helmet to treat plagiocephaly, colic, reflux/GER, etc.

  2. Developmental Milestones

    Time frame: 12 months

    Patients' enrolled in the study will have developmental stones monitored as per general pediatrician's protocol to screen for developmental delays.

Study contacts

Contact information is provided by the study sponsor or research team.

Jessica Martone, PhD, MSW

CONTACT

[email protected]

619-693-6303

Kimberly J Wolf, DO

CONTACT

[email protected]

619-583-7611

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Osteopathy's Promise to Children

Other

Registry information

Acronym: OPT-IN

Important dates

Study start
2023
Primary completion
2025
Study completion
2025
First posted
May 8, 2023
Registry last updated
Aug 3, 2025

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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