The fontanelle of a newborn is hard at birth

The fontanelle is a part of the top of a child's head that is not covered by bones and appears to be throbbing to the naked eye. Under normal circumstances, the fontanelle of a newborn is relatively soft and becomes hard after a period of development. However, some parents may find that their baby's fontanelle is very hard when they are born. So why is the fontanelle of a newborn hard when it is born? Let's introduce it in detail below.

If a newborn's fontanelle is hard right after birth, it is mostly caused by a bulging fontanelle.

Bulging fontanelle - The normal anterior fontanelle is flat. If it suddenly bulges or gradually becomes bulging and full, it may be a signal of disease.

Intracranial infection is common in various diseases such as meningitis and encephalitis, due to increased intracranial pressure. The fontanelle is bulging, especially when the child is crying, and it feels tight to the touch. If the child is accompanied by symptoms such as fever, vomiting, stiff neck, and convulsions, parents should take the child to the hospital for emergency treatment as soon as possible. Intracranial diseases such as a tumor in the brain, or subdural effusion, pus, or blood accumulation can also cause the baby's anterior fontanelle to gradually become full, so it should be diagnosed and treated as soon as possible. Drug factors, such as giving the baby large doses of cod liver oil, vitamin A or tetracycline for a long time, can cause the baby's anterior fontanelle to appear full. Some babies are given epinephrine for some reason. If the medication is stopped suddenly, the baby's anterior fontanelle may bulge.

Some other cases:

Sunken fontanelle refers to the fontanelle being sunken downward due to illness or other reasons.

Acute dehydration is common in severe diarrhea, vomiting, high fever, excessive sweating, etc. The baby's anterior fontanelle will become sunken due to dehydration, and the baby needs to be replenished with fluids immediately. Malnutrition If the baby is malnourished or too thin for a long time, the anterior fontanelle will appear sunken.

Premature closure of the fontanelle refers to the premature closure of the fontanelle before five or six months.

If a mother of a baby with brain dysplasia finds that the baby's fontanelle has closed prematurely, she must ask a doctor to measure the baby's head circumference. If the head circumference is lower than normal and there are other abnormalities in intellectual development, it may be brain maldevelopment.

Excessive calcium supplementation may also cause the baby's fontanelle to close prematurely, which may limit the baby's brain development.

Delayed closure of fontanelle means that the baby's anterior fontanelle has not closed after 18 months.

Babies with rickets will have symmetrical skull domes on the top of their foreheads, commonly known as "square skulls". It is usually caused by the mother's lack of some trace elements during pregnancy. After birth, the baby's growth stagnates, development is delayed, and the fontanelle closes late, which manifests as mental retardation, deafness, and short stature.

A large fontanelle refers to the gradual enlargement of the anterior fontanelle shortly after the baby is born, which can reach 4 to 5 centimeters.

The most common type of hydrocephalus is obstructive hydrocephalus. The child's head is enlarged, the head circumference is larger than that of normal children, the anterior fontanelle is difficult to close, the child's development is poor, and the child has mental retardation. A head CT scan showed that the lateral ventricles and third ventricles were enlarged, and he needed to be promptly treated with surgery by a neurosurgeon.

After a baby with congenital rickets is born, not only the anterior fontanelle is large, but the posterior fontanelle is also large. The middle bone suture (sagittal suture) is also wider, connecting the front and back fontanelles.

The fontanelle is too small - it means that the baby's front fontanelle is only as big as the tip of a finger, or is so small that the fontanelle cannot be touched.

Microcephaly is mostly caused by premature closure of the craniosynostosis, especially premature closure of the sagittal suture, which can make the baby's head longer and narrower, forming a "scaphoid head" with a protruding occipital part, a wide forehead, and a small or invisible anterior fontanelle.