Reasons for soft head in newborn

Today's young parents really love their babies. However, in the process of caring for the baby, some inadvertent negligence may cause harm to the baby. Careful new parents will find that there is a place on the top of the baby's head near the forehead that often jumps. It looks like it is jumping very violently, but it feels soft to the touch, as if there is no skull. That is why the elderly often tell their children not to touch it.

1. Every baby is born like this, with a soft bump on the left side of the head. That is the crown of the head. You have seen many babies wearing hats or having a cloth wrapped on their heads. That is to protect the crown of the head. It will probably take a few months for it to harden. Be sure to protect it and don't bump it.

2. This "soft part" is medically called fontanelle. It is the part of the skull that has not yet grown together, not a missing bone. Despite this, it is actually much stronger than it looks. The outer protective film is strong enough to handle normal touch, and daily care such as washing hair and cutting hair will not harm the child's brain.

3. Touching the fontanelle can help you understand its size and closure. When you are sick, you can also find problems by checking the fontanelle:

Question 1: If the fontanelle closes too early (3 to 4 months after birth), the measured head circumference is smaller than normal, and microcephaly, brain malformation, etc. are common.

Question 2: If the baby's fontanelle is obviously sunken, full, or bulging when the baby is in a quiet state, there may be an abnormality. In the former case, infants may suffer from severe dehydration and malnutrition; in the latter case, infants may suffer from increased intracranial pressure, inflammation (encephalitis, meningitis) or poisoning (acute VitA poisoning). If your baby exhibits these symptoms, you should contact your doctor to detect the problem early.

Question 3: If the fontanelle closes late and the anterior fontanelle has not closed for more than 18 months, it indicates that the child may suffer from bone development and calcification disorders, severe malnutrition, rickets, hypothyroidism, hydrocephalus, etc.

4. The larger opening at the front of a child’s head is called the anterior fontanelle, which is approximately diamond-shaped and about 2.5 cm × 2.5 cm wide. The anterior fontanelle is usually flat, but it becomes slightly convex when the child cries. If the baby's hair is sparse, the pulse beating at the fontanelle can be clearly seen.

5. The other opening on the back of the head at the occipital region is called the posterior fontanelle, which is smaller than the anterior fontanelle, triangular in shape, and about 1.2 cm in diameter.

Therefore, as the baby grows, the skull continues to grow, new bone continues to grow at the edge of the skull, and the fontanelle continues to shrink. The anterior fontanelle of most children usually closes around 1 to 1.5 years old; the posterior fontanelle closes completely before 3 months. For more details, please stay tuned for updates from the editor.