Torticollis

What it is

Torticollis means “twisted neck” — the head tilts to one side and turns toward the other because of tightness in the neck muscles. The most common form in babies, congenital muscular torticollis, comes from tightness in one of the strap muscles (the sternocleidomastoid) and is usually noticed in the first weeks of life. In older children and adults, torticollis is more often a temporary muscle spasm, sometimes after sleeping awkwardly or a minor strain.

What it looks like

In an infant you may see a consistent head tilt, a preference for looking one way, and sometimes a small firm area in the neck muscle. In adults it usually shows up as a painful, stiff neck held in a tilted position. In most cases it is uncomfortable but not dangerous, and it does not come with arm or leg symptoms.

How we treat it

The great majority improves with simple care. For infants, gentle stretching, positioning, and tummy time — guided by you and a therapist — resolve most cases, and the earlier it is started the better it works. For adults, gentle stretching, heat, and a short course of anti-inflammatory or muscle-relaxing medication usually settle a spasm within days to weeks.

When to look further

If a head tilt does not respond to stretching, comes with other findings, or appears suddenly with neck pain after an injury, I look more carefully — because a small number of cases come from the bones or the nervous system rather than the muscle, and those are handled differently.

The science — for the curious

Congenital muscular torticollis is one of the most common newborn musculoskeletal findings, and the reason early stretching matters so much is that a baby’s neck is still highly adaptable — started early, simple therapy reshapes the tightness before it sets. Persistent torticollis beyond toddler years, or torticollis that appears later with other symptoms, is worth a closer look to be sure the muscle is truly the cause.

Learn more

OrthoInfo — Neck Pain: orthoinfo.aaos.org

This handout is general education about a common condition and does not replace the personalized advice we discuss in clinic. If anything here does not match what we talked about, what we talked about wins — please ask me.