Your child may have
floppy baby syndrome if, at 6 months, she is unable
to sit in an upright position even with support.
There are many reasons why a baby may be unusually
floppy with dire consequences to deal with, but in
most instances there is no serious underlying cause.
The infant is just slow to mature.
Key Issues
• The list of causes for floppiness is huge
and can be caused by any one of the numerous rare
diseases; it can only be determined through a series
of tests. Probable causes can be narrowed down to
genes, muscular diseases and incorrect development
to that part of the brain which is responsible for
maintaining muscle tone.
• A baby with such a condition may be slower
to develop than a normal baby and may require support
for longer periods as the head control is slower to
mature.
• In pronounced cases, baby will be behind in
terms of development and this is largely due to weak
muscles and not mental impairment. He will acquire
key milestones at a later age or stage than his counterparts.
• Medically no reason seems to point out the
cause for the floppiness although there may be a family
pattern of later than normal development in areas
such as sitting, crawling and walking. Premature infants
are more predisposed to floppiness than term babies
but their muscle tone improves with maturity.
• Floppiness doesn't worsen with time although
the condition is usually present from the time baby
is born. With time baby starts to improve and gradually
grows out of the limpness, and only slight muscle
weakness is left.
Things to look out for
• Notable signs include weak suckling, drooling,
poor swallowing, flicking eye movements and low muscle
tone. Usually they are dismissed as many newborns
have one or more of these problems but the significance
of all not being normal becomes clearer when these
symptoms are viewed collectively.
• When resting your baby may lie with arms and
legs splayed out flat and generally make fewer movements
in comparison to a normal baby.
• At six months baby is still not able to sit
upright even with the aid of pillows and cushions;
his head tends to loll and he may roll to one side.
He is not able to take his weight on his feet.
• When you hold baby upright under the arms,
he has this tendency to slip through your grasp.
Things you can do
• Because mildly floppy babies have not had
much opportunity to move about and strengthen their
muscles, you can provide the infant plenty of opportunities
to move around and kick about with his arms and legs.
Give him tummy time by leaving him on the floor on
his tummy or back to help tone up his muscles.
• In more severe cases you can learn how to
perform exercises by attending physiotherapy sessions
and incorporate them into your daily regime and do
them with your baby. Through this your baby's muscle
coordination will improve.
• Lastly be patient and remember if tests show
no underlying cause your baby will go on to develop
normal muscle tone in time.
