Cranial base changes following surgical treatment of craniosynostosis.
Three-dimensional osseous surface images from CT scans have been used to study the endo- and exocranial bases of 87 patients with a variety of craniosynostoses. Patients were studied prior to cranial surgery in infancy, perioperatively, and 1 year postoperatively. The dysmorphology of the endocranial base is diagnostically specific for synostosis of the metopic, sagittal, unicoronal, and bicoronal sutures. Cranio-orbital surgery in infancy for nonsyndromal solitary and bicoronal synostosis seems to induce normalization of endocranial symmetry in the first postoperative year. This normalization occurs to a lesser degree in patients with multiple synostoses. These findings suggest that the cranial base dysmorphology of craniosynostosis is a secondary manifestation of an undefined primary disorder. Furthermore, persistent postoperative dysmorphology may reflect abnormal neural rather than osseous growth.
Marsh
J L
JL
Vannier
M W
MW
D002648:Child; D003393:Cranial Sutures / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D003398:Craniosynostoses / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D012886:Skull / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed