Question 1

Is it bad to have a large anterior fontanel?

Accepted Answer

Large fontanels may caused by:
    down syndrome
    hydrocephalus
    intrauterine growth retardation (iugr)
    premature birth

rarer causes:

    achondroplasia
    apert syndrome
    cleidocranial dysostosis
    congenital rubella
    neonatal hypothyroidism
    osteogenesis imperfecta
    rickets.

Question 2

What is the definition or description of: large anterior fontanel?

Accepted Answer

represent points over which the growing skull plates will eventually close.  Failure of the involved growth plates, those which meet at the front and top of the head, to grow to closure results in a large anterior fontanel.  It is the soft spot on the top, front of an infant's head.

Question 3

6 month old has extra cerebralspinal fluid. im told will resolve on its own. is this true? what if left untreated?he has fluctuating anterior fontanel

Accepted Answer

The spinal fluid is produced continuously through life at about a tablespoonful per hour by structures in the brain. It circulates through it's normal pathway & is absorbed into the circulation from the brain surface. Blockage of flow must be opened or structures distort but the body adjusts to fluctuations in fluid amount.True excess production will produce rapid head growth & need surgery.

Question 4

What is the definition or description of: delayed closure of anterior fontanel?

Accepted Answer

Most anterior fontanel close between 18-24 months of age. Delayed closure means persistence of open fontanel beyond 24 months of age.

Question 5

I was changing my baby's clothes and accidentally pushed on the anterior fontanel.  she is behaving normally.  should i have her checked out?

Accepted Answer

It actually has pretty tough coverings.

Question 6

My 6 1/2 mo old ped. felt his anterior fontanel but says that it might be closing early than usual. should i be worried? or is this normal @ his age?

Accepted Answer

It is a bit early for the skull to fuse, but unless he has had a head MRI or ct to assess exactly how open or closed they are, i would not panic. If his head shape is normal and symmetric, if head size is increasing along appropriate percentiles, development is normal, then i would put my mind at ease. However, these parameters, including head size and shape, need to be monitored monthly for now.

Question 7

I'm 51 years old. i felt a " sunken" area on top of my skull. i think its the anterior fontanel. is this bad? its ok to touch but continuously it hurt

Accepted Answer

The anterior fontanelle closes early in childhood and does not reopen.  Could you have had an injury with a depressed skull fracture?  Other possibilities include thinning of bone, infection, tumor.  You should have this examined.

Question 8

What is the best treatment for delayed closure of anterior fontanel soft spot?

Accepted Answer

Most kids will have what feels to be closure of the anterior fontanel by 15-18 mo but some may persist. The separation between the bones will persist to some degree until about 9 when kids reach their adult head size. In examining thousands of kids over 3 decades, i never found one that didn't eventually close.

Question 9

Hello dr, 
i have cyst on my anterior fontanel since birth and am almost 26 now. any prescription to diminish it aside from surgical excision, please?

Accepted Answer

A cyst is fluid filled and no medication will change the size of the cyst. Talk to your neurosurgeon about pros and cons of surgery.

Question 10

How to identify the anterior and posterior fontanels of a newborn, explain their functions.?

Accepted Answer

The fontanels can be identified by an exam of the baby's head. They are soft spots that you can feel between the different bones of the skull which have not yet fused. The anterior fontanel is easiest to find be cause it is typically larger. Fontanels do not a have a true function but are fibrous sheets of tissue that connect the plates of the immature skull while protecting the brain below.

Large anterior fontanel

Is it bad to have a large anterior fontanel?

Ask U.S. doctors your own question and get educational, text answers — it's anonymous and free!

Ask U.S. doctors your own question and get educational, text answers — it's anonymous and free!

HealthTap doctors are based in the U.S., board certified, and available by text or video.

What is the definition or description of: large anterior fontanel?

6 month old has extra cerebralspinal fluid. im told will resolve on its own. is this true? what if left untreated?he has fluctuating anterior fontanel

What is the definition or description of: delayed closure of anterior fontanel?

I was changing my baby's clothes and accidentally pushed on the anterior fontanel. she is behaving normally. should i have her checked out?

My 6 1/2 mo old ped. felt his anterior fontanel but says that it might be closing early than usual. should i be worried? or is this normal @ his age?

I'm 51 years old. i felt a " sunken" area on top of my skull. i think its the anterior fontanel. is this bad? its ok to touch but continuously it hurt

What is the best treatment for delayed closure of anterior fontanel soft spot?

Hello dr, i have cyst on my anterior fontanel since birth and am almost 26 now. any prescription to diminish it aside from surgical excision, please?

How to identify the anterior and posterior fontanels of a newborn, explain their functions.?

People also searched for:

Get the Free App for Members

Get the Free App for Doctors

Product

Company

Work with Us

Why Trust Us