1.6.3 Benign paroxysmal torticollis

A 9-month-old girl is reported to have had her third such episode last night: her head suddenly tilted to the left and she appeared generally unwell, refusing her bottle for several hours before returning to normal. This was one of a series of episodes over two months, each lasting somewhere between six and eighteen hours, and during these spells she seems to have a headache, becoming fretful and quiet rather than her usual sociable self. There was no fever, no rash, and no history of trauma preceding last night's episode. Once the episode had already passed, her neurological examination was entirely normal, with age-appropriate tone, reflexes and gait; she was not examined by us while the tilting itself was actually happening, and no other underlying disorder to explain these recurring episodes has been found.