Infant triplets all undergo surgery for same rare skull condition

CENTER MORICHES, N.Y. -- Amy and Mike Howard have gotten used to surprises over the last year.

The first was realizing they were having triplets.

"It was very overwhelming," Amy said.

Then in October came Kaden, Jackson and Hunter.

"After they were born you could tell their heads were a little malformed, deformed," Amy said.

It was craniosynostosis.

The boys' skulls had fused too early creating abnormally shaped heads and health risks.

"It can cause consequences to the brain by increasing the pressure inside their heads," said Dr. David Chesler, Stony Brook Medicine.

Doctors say the condition is not uncommon but it is extremely rare, like possibly the first of its kind rare, for triplets to each have the same condition.

So they had to operate to remove parts of their skulls.

The boys underwent the minimally invasive procedure three months ago at Stony Brook Children's Hospital.

"He's got this almost almond or wedged shaped head, that's now gone three months later, it's nice and round," Dr. Chesler said.

"We were freaking out. It was stressful, but Stony Brook, they were so amazing," Mike said.

The only sign of the surgeries are the helmets the boys have to wear pretty much all the time.

"They wear them for six months to a year and that helps to mold the head back into a normal shape once we've removed the part of the skull that's restricting the growth," Dr. Chesler said.

This little bump in the road has not hindered the boys developmentally. They are hitting all their milestones.