A baby in a Pavlik harness for hip dysplasia can still wear ordinary clothes. What changes is which ones. A lot of a newborn drawer pulls over the head, and some of it holds the legs closer together than the harness wants them. Here is what we carry that can sit under the straps, and what can go over them.
We sell baby clothes. We are not doctors, and we have not tested every harness. Check with your baby's orthopedic team before you change anything they showed you, and read what follows as notes on fabric and fit.
What the harness asks of clothes
The International Hip Dysplasia Institute keeps a page of Pavlik harness tips for parents. Three points from it matter here. Soft, thin clothing can go under the harness. Bodysuits with snaps at the bottom make diaper changes easier. And clothes should be as loose around the legs as possible, with anything that presses the legs together avoided.
So the short version: thin and soft against the skin, open at the bottom, roomy at the hips and thighs. And clothes are never a reason to undo a strap your team told you to keep fastened.
Under the straps: a thin bodysuit with snaps
The layer under the harness sits between the straps and the skin, so it should be thin, with nothing bulky where a strap crosses. A parent tips sheet linked from the IHDI page points out that a short sleeve puts fabric between the skin and the shoulder and chest straps, where a sleeveless top leaves the skin bare.
The Imps & Elfs striped bodysuit is that kind of layer. Short sleeves, GOTS certified organic cotton, an envelope neck that opens wide, and three snaps at the bottom, the opening IHDI mentions for diaper changes. It has no collar. IHDI says collared bodysuits are often recommended, but a regular one is usually enough unless the shoulder straps rub the neck. If they do, the same page suggests soft padding over the straps, so ask your team what to use.
Whatever goes under, IHDI asks for a daily look at the sides of the neck, the groin creases and the knee creases. A seam or a snap that marks the skin there is a reason to change the layer.
Over the straps: a top that wraps, joggers a size up
The easy pieces on top open flat. The Imps & Elfs wrapover top has long sleeves and ties at one side. Over the harness and the bodysuit it goes on like a small jacket: lay the baby on it, arms into the sleeves, cross the front, tie. Nothing goes over the head, and no strap has to come undone. A size up leaves room for the chest band.
With the legs held bent and apart, most trousers either won't go on or squeeze the knees toward each other. The parent tips sheet on the IHDI site suggests harem style pants one to two sizes above the current size, and warns against anything that squashes the legs together.
Our Imps & Elfs joggers and starry joggers are not harem pants. Both have a low, roomy seat and an elastic waist, which is why a size up is worth trying over the harness. The plain joggers end in a ribbed cuff, the starry pair in a plain hem. Try them with the harness on and the legs in their usual wide position. If the knees get pulled together, or a cuff presses on the booties, go up another size or skip them for now.
We kept our leggings off this page on purpose. They are cut close to the leg, and loose around the legs is what IHDI asks for.
The pieces on this page
- Imps & Elfs striped bodysuit, $24. Pink or light grey, sizes 0-3 to 9-12 months. Under the straps.
- Imps & Elfs wrapover top, $29. Six colors, sizes 0 month to 9-12 months. Over the straps.
- Imps & Elfs organic cotton joggers, $29. Navy, mustard, grey or pink, sizes 0 month to 9-12 months. Over the straps, a size up.
- Imps & Elfs starry joggers, $21.50. Starry pink, blue or forest green, sizes 0 month to 9-12 months. Over the straps, a size up.
Not every color comes in every size.
Picking the size
Imps & Elfs size by height. If a tag shows a number instead of months, our size guide reads 50 as 0 month, 56 as 0-3 months, 62 as 3-6, 68 as 6-9 and 74 as 9-12. For the bodysuit under the straps, take the size your baby is now, so no spare fabric bunches under a strap. For the top and joggers over the harness, go one size up. These pieces stop at 9-12 months, so there is no size up from 9-12 in this line.
Babies grow fast in these months, and the harness may be adjusted or changed as they do, so buy a few pieces at a time rather than a full drawer. Not sure? Write to us with your baby's height and the piece you are looking at, and we will measure the garment itself before you order.