Our Readers Share Their Baby’s ‘Clicky Hips’ Stories And We Don’t Feel So Alone

Do you have a 'hippy baby'? I was so happy to know I was not alone when it came to utter confusion over my daughter's hip condition. She was born with hip dysplasia or 'clicky hips' as it is sometimes called. It is something the doctors check for routinely when your baby is born, and although it is very common and usually not serious - often your baby will have to wear a little brace for a few weeks (about 12) and be monitored by x-rays. If the condition persists an operation is offered about 18 months. It is usually better to catch it as early as possible and if it's not treated your child may have hip problems later in life. The condition is not painful for your baby who will happily kick away and continue to be as adorable as you can imagine. For those who don't know what it is: The hip has a ball and socket joint. In a baby, with a normal hip, the ball fits firmly into the socket. In babies with development dysplasia, the hip joint hasn't formed completely and the socket part is too shallow. It is usually treated with a Pavlick Harness -a soft brace that's designed to gently position your baby's hips so they are aligned correctly at the joint and to keep the hip joints secure so your baby's little bone gets a chance to grow and secure the ball and socket joint. Our readers felt really strongly about this topic and were happy to share their stories about their experiences: We were lucky that it was found by the paediatrician the day after our little man was born. We were so upset when we found out, it's not something I expected or knew about and still don't know much about, so thank you for writing this. As first time parents we just hadn't a notion. But we're lucky it was caught so early on and it's no bother to him! He was breach until 37 weeks, then we had a successful ECV. He'll be in his brace 9 weeks on Friday, and everything is going well so far! Can't wait to bath my little starfish at home once the brace is off! - Aoife My daughter was put into the brace at 5 weeks old for 6 weeks she was my first born and I was so upset . She was not breach and we have no hip issues in either side of the family so I had never even heard of it. The worse bit was not being able to bath her for 6 weeks and trying to change her with the brace on it really didn't bother her at all. I was told she may be slower to crawl walk etc cause of the brace She is now nearly 3 years old . She started crawling at just over 5 months was pulling herself up at 8 months and walking at 11 months so it never held her back , her favourite toy at the moment is her scooter ... so to any mums that are currently dealing with the hip harness it is a pain but much better to get it sorted and it won't hamper her development - Maria My son had it 40 years ago and I had to put 4 terry toweling nappies on him every time I changed him. Sometimes all four nappies would get wet, nightmare with no automatic washing machine's or tumble dryer's but his hips are fine 40 years later. Worth the effort ? Ronda To be fair you could only hear them if it was really silent and you started moving your legs in frantic motions telling us to listen - Emma The only issues I used to have with it were huge explosions in the nappy and trying to clean the harness! And not being able to bathe them when you liked. This may have had a lasting effect as he is still bathed pretty much every night and he's 4 ? We kept his brace for his keepsake box as it is part of his story too - Corrine My daughter got her harness on at 1 day old, unfortunately it was too big & this wasn't discovered until our first appointment a week later in Temple Street so she had hers on for 9 weeks in total, she had her scan on 1st December & was allowed to take it off! Best day ever!! 6 weeks later we were back in temple street for an X-ray, her consultant then noticed that her other hip wasn't developing correctly so she is now in a brace for another 8 weeks, the brace is so much easier than the harness, we can take her out of it for an hour per day instead of an hour per week!  There is a 30 to 40 percent chance that she will need the operation to fix the left hip but please god the brace works!! We are back on 9th march for another scan & see what the next step is!! She is my 2nd child, my son didn't have it & there is no history of it in either of our families! Nicola My little girl is currently half way through her harness journey at 11 weeks of age. I also had it when I was born. She is our first born, a girl, was a breech baby and her mum had the same.. so she pretty much ticked every box!! It doesn't bother her in the slightest and it's so so common just a lot of mums don't tend to talk much about it. - Niamh My daughter has it, she is 3 now, unfortunately for her it wasnt found until she was 16 months at which point her left leg was 3cm shorter than her right as her hip was completely dislocated, fast forward to now, 5 months in a body cast, a salter osteotomy ( surgery to cut bone and reconstruct her hip ) and her hip has again come out of place and im 99% when she goes for her next check up in Temple st in a weeks time they are going to tell us it has dislocated again! Parents do need to be aware before the baby comes because early detection is key. IF she had treatment when she should have then she may not have ever needed the surgery and if she had of it most likely would have worked. Instead, she is facing a lifetime of dislocation and repeat surgeries aswell as arthritis and a possible hip replacement in her 30s  - Denise I know a number of parents that have used ergonomic baby carriers on the recommendations of consultants and their children have not needed to use braces. That spread squat position that an ergonomic carrier puts them in is the same as a brace or harness position - Melissa Do you have a 'hippy' baby? We would love to hear your experiences. Here is some more information and here is the original article we published on it.