Objective: To compare cranial helmet therapy (CHT) and physiotherapy (PT) for the effective
treatment of positional plagiocephaly in infants in terms of improving functional recovery. Methods:
This was a prospective cohort study involving 48 infants between 5–10 months of age with cranial
deformities. The Cranial Vault Asymmetry Index (CVAI) and the Brunet–Lezine scale were calculated
at the initiation of the study and after 40 treatment sessions. Results: The infants’ first assessment
showed a delay in overall development areas with a global developmental quotient (DQ) (posture,
coordination, sociability, and language) of 80.15. Although developmental improvements were
observed in both groups in the Brunet–Lezine scale after treatment, the MANCOVA test showed no
significant differences (F(5) = 0.82, p = 0.506, eta2 = 0.09). The CVAI reduced to 4.07% during the final
evaluation in the cranial helmet group and 5.85% in the physiotherapy group without any significant
differences between the two therapies (p = 0.70). Conclusions: No statistically significant differences
were found between CHT and PT. After treatment, improvements from baseline measurements were
observed in each of the readings of cranial deformity.
