What action is likely expected from the physician for a child who has outgrown their cranial remolding orthosis after 8 months?

The expected action for a child who has outgrown their cranial remolding orthosis after 8 months is to discontinue orthotic treatment since the child's head growth has plateaued. After this period of consistent use, if the cranial remolding orthosis no longer fits properly, it typically indicates that the child has reached the end of the appropriate treatment phase for cranial molding helmet therapy.

At this stage, the primary goal of treatment is to reshape and encourage proper cranial growth, which is most effective while the child’s head is still malleable. If there are no further significant changes to the head shape or growth, it is reasonable to conclude that the orthotic therapy has fulfilled its purpose and further use would not yield additional benefits. Therefore, discontinuing the orthotic treatment is a logical and clinically sound recommendation.

The approach of potentially adjusting the current orthosis would not be effective since it has become too small or ill-fitting due to the child’s growth, while referring for surgical intervention is typically reserved for severe cases where non-surgical measures have failed, which would not apply here given the child's normal growth trajectory. Continuing orthotic treatment would also not be appropriate once the plateau in growth has been identified.