What to do if your child's head circumference is too large

We all know that a baby's large head circumference means that the measured head circumference is greater than the normal head circumference. Moreover, this situation is generally caused by a certain disease. In clinical practice, it is found that the main cause of the increase in children's head circumference is hydrocephalus. Therefore, once the baby's head circumference is found to be abnormal, medical treatment should be sought in time. Let us now understand what we should do if the child's head circumference is too large!

1. Babies at the same stage have exactly the same age and gender, but the size and shape of their heads may be different. Of course, these differences do not exceed a certain limit, that is, the baby's head circumference is generally between the upper and lower 2 standard deviations of the head circumference of children of the same age and gender. Some children have big heads that are obviously beyond the normal range, that is, 2 standard deviations or even 3 standard deviations larger than the head circumference of children of the same age and gender. Then the baby may not only be not smart, but also show intellectual retardation. It is best to take the baby to the hospital for examination and diagnosis.

2. Several abnormally large situations

1. Hydrocephalus refers to an increase in the volume of cerebrospinal fluid. Symptoms include protruding forehead, downward turning of eyeballs, exposure of upper sclera, presenting the "sun setting sign", and exposed scalp veins, which are often accompanied by mental retardation.

2. Intracranial space-occupying lesions, common ones include intracranial tumors, hemangiomas, etc. In addition to having an abnormally enlarged head circumference, these babies may also show signs of irritability, high-pitched crying, nausea, and even vomiting;

3. Megacephaly, which is mainly due to excessive proliferation of glial cells. The baby's head circumference increases progressively, and the physical development is slow, so the baby has a big head and a small body. Half of them may have convulsions, and the prognosis is generally poor.

4. Simple enlarged head but normal intelligence may be caused by chondrodysplasia, an autosomal dominant genetic disease that begins in the fetal period. This disease is characterized by short limbs and a relatively large head circumference. Because the skull base cartilage ossifies prematurely while the skull continues to grow, a special facial feature is formed, with a large head, wide face, flat nose, and protruding forehead and lower jaw.