Ozer Twins
Mother Campaigns to Raise Money for her Twins who Suffer from Flat Head Syndrome
Judith and Memet Ozer were overjoyed when their twins were born on 25 June, 2007. Though four weeks premature, there were no serious complications and to add to their joy, Judith gave birth to a boy and a girl, named Mohammed and Melisa.
When Mohammed was two-weeks-old, Memet noticed that his son’s face appeared to be bigger on one side. They were concerned about their little boy’s appearance but when the parents spoke to their health visitor about this, they were told that there was nothing to worry about.
Ten weeks later, Judith and Memet were aware that their daughter’s head shape was beginning to change also, so decided to visit a special care registrar to see what was wrong. It was here that they were given clarification that Melisa was suffering from flat head syndrome, also known as plagiocephaly. Wondering what to do next, the parents were told that their daughter would ‘grow out of it’, and were advised to visit again in three months time.
Not happy with this advice, Judith took her little girl to their local GP. He confirmed that Melisa had the condition, but said that her hair would grow over the disfigurement and nobody would notice the difference. Judith and Memet didn’t know what to do next. Concerned about both children, they believed that there was nothing that could be done and tried to put the problem to the back of their minds.
It was at a family funeral in January this year that Judith was given the advice she was looking for. Judith’s uncle commented on baby Melisa’s condition as his granddaughter had suffered from plagiocephaly.
He told Judith about the STARband™ treatment that his granddaughter had received at the Technology in Motion centre in Cardiff, and suggested that Judith take Melisa for a check-up.
When Judith took her daughter to the Centre, the specialist confirmed that she had brachycephaly (flattening across the back of the head). It was here that they were advised that they should check her twin brother also and Mohammed’s plagiocephaly (flattening of one side of the head) was diagnosed. Mohammed was also diagnosed with torticollis, which is a stiffness of the neck muscles. If untreated this could lead to a permanent ‘tilting’ condition. Judith decided to progress with treatment straight away, but at £1,950 for each STARband helmet, she was concerned about her finances.
The Technology in Motion Centre in Cardiff has a trust fund to help those parents in financial difficulty. The Ozer family was given a £1000 gift from this fund, to put towards the cost of the treatment for their twins.
Judith is now actively fundraising to raise the remaining costs. She has arranged an event on 26th April in the New York pub in Swansea, where she hopes that a night of local entertainment and a raffle, will help her to raise the amount she needs.
Both of her children started the STARband treatment this year. The treatment, which involves a specially made STARband helmet being tailor made for each individual infant, is worn 23 hours a day and helps to re-shape the skull as the infant grows. The outcome being a round, more natural looking head shape that is created.
Judith said: “We have had lots of support from the public and not only have people donated money towards this treatment, they have helped us to highlight the condition to others. We know that our twins’ lives will be positively changed from this treatment and they won’t feel self conscious about their appearance when they grow up.”