Parents forced to turn to payday loans to fund baby daughter's head deformation treatment after NHS refuse to help Molly Askham had 'flat head syndrome' and her skull appeared misshapen She needed a £2,000 specially designed helmet to reshape her head The NHS would not fund the treatment as it deemed it to be 'cosmetic' Parents borrowed £400 in high-interest loans to pay for private treatment After 17 weeks wearing the helmet Molly's head returned to a normal shape Family are still paying off debts and now calling for NHS to offer treatment When Molly Askham developed a severe head deformity, her parents were forced to take desperate measures to pay for private treatment not available on the NHS. The baby had a condition known as plagiocephaly or 'flat head syndrome' and it was so extreme that one ear appeared to have moved towards the back of her head. Newborn babies with soft skulls can develop flat areas to the back and side of the head due to their sleeping position. Molly Askham (pictured with mother, Michelle) developed 'flat head syndrome' as a newborn baby which meant that her skull became misshapen Doctors told worried parents Michelle, 27, and Peter Askham, 32, that the problem should cure itself. Instead it got worse. The couple contacted a clinic which uses a specially designed helmet to reshape the head back into the correct position, but the treatment cost £2,000 and would only begin after payment of a £500 deposit. With no savings to fall back on, the couple searched for moneylenders on the internet. They took out a high-interest £200 'payday loan' and another expensive £200 'doorstep loan' and thanks to donations from well-wishers Molly was given her helmet. Mother-of-two Mrs Askham said she was 'shocked and angry' to discover the treatment for such a severe form of plagiocephaly was not available on the NHS because it was regarded as 'cosmetic' while treatment was sometimes provided for breast enlargement surgery and tattoo removals. Molly's condition, which began to appear when she was ten-weeks-old, was so extreme that one ear appeared to have moved towards the back of her head The helmet is worn 23 hours a day and holds the normal side of the head in position while providing a 'gap' for the flattened side to grow into. Treatment can take up to 18 months, but it worked so well for Molly that 17 weeks later her head was normal shape again and the helmet came off. Mrs Askham, whose husband has a low-paid job with a welding company, said they were still making regular repayments to the doorstep lender and had to borrow money from her parents to repay the other cash loan as it had already more than doubled to over £400. Commenting on the lack of NHS help, Mrs Askham, of Leeds, said yesterday: 'Funding should be available for a deformity as bad as this. It's horrible to think of your child as being deformed, but that's what it is. Her ear was not where it was meant to be and her nose was moving as well. These helmets do work and worked very well for Molly but it was very frightening and it seemed as if her skin was moving. She was a little girl and one ear was in a strange place. Molly's head was normal when she was born five weeks prematurely last August at St James' Hospital in Leeds, weighing 4lb 14oz. She spent two periods in hospital during the early weeks of her life because she developed meningitis. She needed a £2,000 specially designed helmet to reshape her head but the NHS would not pay for the treatment as they considered it to be 'cosmetic' and doctors believed that it would correct itself Molly's worried parents had to turn to payday and doorstep loans to fund her treatment and after she had been wearing the helmet for just 17 weeks she had recovered sufficiently that she no longer required it By the age of 10 weeks it was 'very noticeable' that one side of Molly's head had become flat. The premature baby was born little and weak and her head constantly flopped to one side because she didn't have the strength to hold it up. Her GP recommended she be given as much 'tummy time' as possible to keep off the flat side of the head, but that didn't work. 'The GP made it clear from the start that the NHS wouldn't fund any treatment and the website clearly stated that the helmet treatment was regarded as cosmetic and not available,' said Mrs Askham. However, she was given the details of the Steeper Clinic in Leeds which specialises in the 'cranial remoulding' technique. After a series of scans and consultations the helmet was fitted and Molly's head grew back to the correct shape. Molly's head was normal when she was born five weeks prematurely last August at St James' Hospital in Leeds, weighing 4lb 14oz She spent her first few weeks in and out of hospital because she developed meningitis but she is now a healthy baby. Her parents are continuing to pay off the loans The family raised the rest of the money through fundraising events and online donations and they have spoken out to raise awareness of the problem. The local NHS Airedale, Bradford and Leeds Primary Care Trust was recently disbanded, but an earlier statement on the case said: 'The NHS does not usually fund the use of cranial remoulding orthosis for babies with plagiocephaly. This is a largely cosmetic issue and in the majority of cases the condition will resolve spontaneously with advice around positioning of the baby. 'Flat head syndrome', or plagiocephaly, is the term used to describe the flattened appearance of some baby's heads. It is common for babies to develop a flattening of the back or side of the head when they are a few months old because they lie on it while the skull is still soft enough to be moulded to any shape. Flattening of the head is a cosmetic problem which does not cause any symptoms and does not affect brain development. Premature babies are more likely to develop plagiocephaly because they are squeezed through the birth canal when their skulls have not fully developed. No treatment is required if the deformation is mild because the skull will correct itself. However, its reshaping can be aided by lying the baby on its stomach during the day and by changing the position of their toys so they are encouraged to lie on the non-flattened side of their skull. In severe cases a helmet may be required to reshape the skull. These tend to be used in infants aged between six and twelve months but they are not available on the NHS. Some flattening of the skull may remain but it does not tend to be noticeable once the child has a full head of hair. Source: NHS Choices website