Factors that affect the rehabilitation duration in patients with congenital muscular torticollis.

OBJECTIVE: To determine which factors affect the rehabilitation duration in patients with congenital muscular torticollis (CMT) and to predict the duration of rehabilitation and prognosis.

METHODS: One hundred and eighteen patients (79 males and 39 females) who were diagnosed with CMT and received physical therapy were enrolled in this study. We retrospectively reviewed the information in terms of sex, gestational age, birth weight, methods of delivery, fetal presentation, age at diagnosis, the affected sternocleidomastoid (SCM) muscle site, SCM muscle thickness, ratio of muscle thickness on the affected side to that on the unaffected side (called the 'abnormal/normal [A/N] ratio'), and range of motion for cervical rotation and side bending.

RESULTS: The SCM muscle thickness and A/N ratio had a positive linear relationship with the rehabilitation duration. Patients who were in the breech position needed longer rehabilitation. The birth weight and age at diagnosis were negatively correlated with the rehabilitation duration. However, the cervical range of motion, mass site, sex, gestational age, and methods of delivery were not correlated with the rehabilitation duration.

CONCLUSION: Patients with a thicker SCM, lower birth weight, and history of breech delivery had a longer rehabilitation duration.