Abnormal cranial suture/fontanelle morphology

What it means

Any abnormality of the fontanelles (the regions covered by a thick membrane that normally ossify in the first two years of life) or the cranial sutures (the fibrous joints in which the articulating bones or cartilages of the skull are connected by sutural ligaments).

Fontanels are the fibrous, membrane-covered gaps created when more than two cranial bones are juxtaposed, as opposed to sutures, which are narrow seams of fibrous connective tissue that separate the flat bones of the skull. At birth, an infant has six fontanels (the anterior and posterior, two mastoid, and two sphenoid). The anterior fontanel is the largest and most important for clinical evaluation. The average size of the anterior fontanel is 2.1 cm, and the median time of closure is 13.8 months.

Rare diseases that can present with this13

The range is how often this sign appears among people diagnosed with each disease — it is not a probability of having any of them. Many of these signs also occur in common, non-rare conditions. A sign on this page is a conversation to have with a clinician, not a conclusion.

Part of the broader category

Also called: Abnormality of the fontanelles or cranial sutures