How to get a second opinion on your baby's hips
Written by Dr. Mutasem Aldhoon, pediatric orthopedic consultant · Medically reviewed by the Baby Hip Center pediatric orthopedic team · Last reviewed September 1, 2026
Ask for the imaging itself, write down your specific questions, and be straightforward with your baby's doctor — second opinions are routine in orthopedics and asking for one is not a complaint. What you need is a copy of the ultrasound or X-ray images, the report, and your baby's exact age at each scan.
When a second opinion is genuinely useful
- You have been given a borderline result and no clear plan or date for a repeat scan.
- Advice has changed between clinicians, or you have been told two different things.
- Surgery or a cast has been recommended and you want the images read independently first.
- Your baby has a clear risk factor such as breech position but no scan has been arranged.
- You have been offered double nappying, or watchful waiting past three months, for an abnormal scan.
- You simply do not understand what you were told, and the appointment was too short to ask.
What to gather first
- 1The images. Ask medical records or the imaging department for a copy on disc, USB or through the patient portal — you are entitled to them. Photographs of the printed sheet are usually usable too.
- 2The written report for each scan, including the alpha angle for each hip if it is stated.
- 3Your baby's date of birth and the date of each scan, so age in weeks can be calculated.
- 4The birth history: breech or head-down, single or twin, any low fluid, family history of hip problems.
- 5Anything you have been told about treatment so far, and any harness or brace already used.
How to raise it without friction
Most clinicians expect it. A straightforward sentence works: "This is a big decision for us and I would like a second opinion on the images before we go ahead. Could you send me a copy of the report and imaging?" You do not need to justify it further, and it does not stop your baby's current care.
Questions that get useful answers
- What exactly is abnormal on the images — the socket shape, the position of the head, or both?
- What are the measured numbers, and what age were they measured at?
- What happens if we do nothing for six weeks? What is the risk of waiting?
- What is the plan if the first treatment does not achieve a seated hip?
- Who is following this up, and when is the next appointment actually booked for?
What our own review gives you
Upload the images and history and our pediatric orthopedic team sends a written report within 48 hours: what we see on your baby's images, our assessment, clear recommendations, red flags, and the specific questions to put to your treating doctor. It is a second reading of the imaging — not a replacement for your baby's own doctor, and not for emergencies.
Want your own baby's images read by a consultant?
Upload the ultrasound or X-ray you were given and our pediatric orthopedic team sends you a written report within 48 hours — findings, assessment, what to do next, and what to ask your own doctor. One flat fee of $89.
Start a reviewSources
Read next
- Signs of hip dysplasia in newborns and babies
Uneven thigh creases, one leg that seems shorter, limited spread on one side, and the later signs at crawling and walking age.
- Is hip dysplasia painful for babies?
Untreated hip dysplasia is almost never painful in infancy — which is exactly why it gets missed. When pain does appear, and what it means.
- Diagnosed late: hip dysplasia found after 6 months
Screening does miss cases. What treatment looks like when dysplasia is found at 6, 12 or 18 months, and what the outlook is.
This page is general information about developmental dysplasia of the hip, not a diagnosis of your own baby. It does not replace examination by your baby's doctor, and it is not for emergencies.