Surely it has happened to many, when you already have your baby in your arms, who observing it carefully, in those moments when you sleep peacefully and love oozes from your eyes and your senses, you realize that it has a sinking head, just above the forehead, which makes you think if that is normal.
The day you go to the pediatrician you realize that they touch it, and they also measure it with their fingers, and then they say something like "three by three" and before your question they tell you that it is normal that they have it, that they call fontanelle, which has nothing to do with María Fontaneda cookies, even if it sounds the same to you, that you can touch it if you want, although it gives you so much something that you better do it at another time, again in one of those in which love oozes your eyes and your senses, and that little by little it will close. That is the basic information, but as surely you are interested in knowing more about that little head in the head, today I will explain all there is to know about baby's fontanel.
What are fontanelles?
To make it a bit more complicated, I'll start talking about fontanelles, thus, in the plural, because it turns out that the baby is not born with one, but is born with two fontanelles. The former, which is the best known, the largest and the one that takes the longest to close (it does between 9 and 18 months, although neurologists usually set the limit at 24 months) and the posterior fontanelle, smaller and which closes towards the first or second month.
The head of a baby, its skull, is formed by six bones that are joined together by the sutures, formed by elastic, fibrous and strong tissues, which gradually make the bones weld together. A newborn does not have welded bones for a very obvious reason: your head has to grow, and with her his brain. In the absence of this welding, in the spaces where the sutures are we can find soft spots, boneless areas, which are what we know as fontanelles.
In Babies and more When does the baby's fontanelle close?In addition to allowing the head to grow smoothly, fontanelles have a primary role in the birth of the baby. Thanks to them, the head can be compressed at birth, becoming superimposed on some bones with others and thus allowing the head goes through the birth canal without damaging the brain.
Measuring the fontanel
As I said, pediatricians and nurses dedicate each time to measure the baby's head to see that it grows, and to measure the anterior fontanel, to confirm that it is still open. A usual measure in the newborn is three times three, which is equivalent to three fingers in one direction and three in the other (the fontanelle is a hollow that is more or less cross-shaped), although sometimes it can measure a little less or a little more.
If it were very open it would be necessary to do a cranial ultrasound, to confirm that it is not due to an increase in fluid in the brain or a similar problem.
If it were very closed, it would also have to be assessed, because of the risk that in a few weeks or months a craniosynostosis would occur, which is the premature closure of the fontanelles, that is, the union of the baby's bones ahead of time, which should be intervened so that the head and brain can continue to grow.
In each subsequent revision, the fontanel is measured again and it is observed how it is closed until at some point beyond nine months it is no longer felt. Most children have it closed before 18 months and some still have it until almost two years. If they reach these ages even with the open fontanel, it may be advisable to Vitamin D drops supplementation, in addition to recommending less roof and more sky (that is, more activities abroad), in case there is a deficit.
In Babies and more, have you been told not to give him vitamin D because the fontanel is closing?I see her beating
It happens sometimes that observing the head of our babies we realize that your fontanelle is beating, go up and down with the heartbeat. It is normal, because it is an area that is very vascularized.
Bulky fontanelles
The fact that it is normal for them to have fontanel does not mean that we have to forget that they have it, because the aspect that it has can give us clues that there may be a problem. As I have already mentioned, size is important and that is why it is measured in the pediatric clinic, but that is not all, because The fontanel can bulge and can also be depressed.
In case of seeing it bulky there may be a problem, but this has to be seen continuously, not at a specific time. I explain myself: the fontanel can be bulky, as an exit out, when they cry, when they vomit or when they are lying down. If we have them upright, they are calm and the fontanelle is again slightly sunken there is nothing to worry about. If instead lFontanela is still bulky with the quiet child We must request medical evaluation because it may be due to an increase in fluid in the brain (hydrocephalus) or some type of inflammation of the brain, usually secondary to infections (encephalitis, meningitis, ...), which are usually accompanied by other symptoms.
Depressed Fontanelles
In case the fontanel is depressed, sunk, more than usual, we should suspect dehydration or malnutrition. If you are a tiny baby, it will be a sign that you are not eating enough, or rather, that you are not eating practically anything. You have to take the baby to the pediatrician to assess it and you have to seek help for the mother if she is breastfeeding (but first the baby goes, of course). If the cause is gastroenteritis and the baby is vomiting and has diarrhea, before the sign of dehydration it will also be necessary to go to the doctor with relative urgency, in case it is necessary to administer serum.
In Babies and more The baby's head at birth
