Growing skull fracture of the posterior cranial fossa and of the orbital roof.
BACKGROUND
Growing Skull Fractures (GSF) are rare complications of head trauma, primarily reported in infancy and early childhood. GSF are commonly located on calvaria, and rarely in other locations, including the skull base.


METHODS
In this study, we report two cases of GSF occurring in unusual locations. The first, a 8-month old girl, with a GSF of the suboccipital posterior fossa region, and the second, a 4-year old boy with a GSF of the right orbital roof. Both cases underwent operative treatment of the GSF, with microsurgical dissection and excision of the protruding gliotic brain tissue, watertight duraplasty and autologous bone cranial repair. The authors conducted a Medline search of the relevant English literature from 1966 to 2002.


RESULTS
From the search, three cases of suboccipital posterior fossa region GSF and twelve series of orbital GSF, describing a total of 22 cases, have been found.


CONCLUSIONS
A survey of the pathogenic mechanisms underlying this entity in these locations is reported. A review of suboccipital posterior fossa and orbital roof GSF cases, of nosological, ophthalmological and neurological data, neuroradiological and operative findings, and results of different treatment strategies are described.
Caffo
M
M
Neurosurgical Clinic, University of Messina School of Medicine, Via Consolare Valeria I, 98125 Messina, Italy.
Germanò
A
A
Caruso
G
G
Meli
F
F
Calisto
A
A
Tomasello
F
F
D002675:Child, Preschool; D003388:Cranial Fossa, Posterior / Q000293:injuries* / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D016489:Head Injuries, Closed / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D009917:Orbital Fractures / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000601:surgery*; D012887:Skull Fractures / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000601:surgery*; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed