6 Month Well Child Check
Child development.
This is when we expect babies to be sitting up. Now, it can only be for a few seconds, and they can prop themselves with their hands in front of them, but it’s still sitting up. They are getting better depth perception and color vision as well as better control over eye movements.
Child growth.
As before, your child’s height and weight will be plotted on the growth chart. We like to see a baby staying on their growth line. Sometimes, though, they do grow in a stairstep pattern-where they seem to grow really well one visit, then not much the next, then really well the next time. Your pediatrician can tell you if the pattern your child is showing on the chart is normal or not.
General health.
We’ll look at your child from head to toe, as usual. While we’re doing that, we’ll often see how well they sit, and how stable they are while being held standing. Make sure to ask about any rashes, spots, allergy symptoms, or other problems you are concerned about.
Most babies have started some solid foods by now, but are getting most of their nutrition from breast milk or formula. Make sure that if you’re giving solids, only give with a spoon because a bottle feeder can cause them to overeat. Also, give them greens first – just like us, they will prefer the sweet foods, so give them time to learn to eat those.
Health history.
If your child has had any trips to the ER or urgent care, this is the time to tell your doctor about those. Let your doctor know what’s happened during any visits to specialists just in case notes haven’t been sent yet.
Family history.
We will again ask if there are any changes in the family. We’re not there to judge, we just want to know the baby’s family.
Social history.
Are there any changes in the makeup of where the baby lives, or has your baby started daycare? Did someone manage to stop smoking?
Safety issues.
Remember that your baby is very mobile now, so keep a hand on them if they’re on furniture they can fall off of. Make sure they are riding backwards in their car seat while on a drive. We still prefer your baby to sleep on their back, but don’t force them if they prefer to roll over and sleep on their belly. We still don’t like anything else in the crib, no blankets/pillows/toys/etc. If baby goes outside with you, make sure they are covered appropriately to protect from sunburn (see sunburn entry for more details).
Caregiver questions and concerns.
This is your time to ask about anything you have been concerned or curious about. At this age some people ask about crawling, which has a wide range of normal. If you’re having a hard time getting things for your baby, your pediatrician may be a resource for you (eg. many of us have at least a few formula samples, and may know where to sign up for more for you).
Vaccines.
This is the third set of DTaP, IPV, Hib, Rotavirus, and Prevnar, which your baby has also gotten at 2 and 4 months. This will be the third Hepatitis B, which is usually given at birth, 2 months, and 6 months. If it’s influenza, or flu, season, we’ll ask you if you’d like to add that in. We recommend a flu shot because young infants can get quite sick if they catch it. The first time a baby gets a flu shot they will need to get one on the day of the visit, and then another one 4 weeks later.
I know that sounds like a lot of shots, however; most of the time several of them can be combined so it’s actually a lower number of pokes, they really do need these to keep them from getting some pretty bad diseases, and the parents remember this much more than the babies and one poke makes them just as angry as five.
Links.
6 Months at HealthyChildren.org
