Head size 45 cm. How do newborns change head size and chest circumference
The shape of the skull and head of a newborn baby.
Another feature of a newborn child is the presence of a minor birth injury - a tumor on the head of a newborn. This is an absolutely normal physiological short-term phenomenon - swelling of soft tissues due to passage through the birth canal. Imagine that the baby pushes the soft tissues of the birth canal with his head, passes through the hole formed by the bones of the mother's pelvis, makes certain turns that he must make in order to be born. At this time, mainly on the parietal areas is a huge pressure. Because of this, a newborn baby can get a birth injury.
A birth tumor or hematoma in a newborn baby on the head is a minor birth injury, with which 100% of babies born as a result of natural birth in the head presentation are born. But in babies born in the breech presentation, the entire load goes to the pelvic part, and the birth tumor - a bruise - appears on the ass (soft tissues react differently to the load).
The birth tumor completely painlessly disappears in 1-2 days, does not require any treatment.
There is a relationship between the anatomical structure of the mother and the shape of the child's head.
- Skull shape of a newborn baby May be:
"tower", when the shape of the head of a newborn baby is oval, elongated, the so-called "dolichocephalic" shape of the head,
“brachycephalic” is a rounded head shape in infants with pronounced frontal tubercles (as a rule, it is characteristic of infants born in breech presentation).
Both "tower" ("dolichocephalic") and "brachycephalic" head and skull shapes in newborns are the norm.
During childbirth, the bones of the skull of a newborn baby can be dislocated at the seams, because they are malleable and overlap each other. This is also normal, and is not a pathology, and there will be no consequences in the future: all the bones of the skull of a newborn baby will fall into place.
Definitely, after the birth of the baby, there will be swelling of the face and scalp. After a couple of days they leave, which is why many people notice that on the third or fourth day the baby seems to become different.
How to push properly during childbirth.
If the mother behaves incorrectly during childbirth - she presses the born head during attempts in the perineum, pushes in the face, in the eyes, during childbirth - then the baby has hemorrhages - small vessels of the face burst, a huge bruise appears on the face, or small pinpoint hemorrhages . Sometimes blood vessels in the eyes burst. That is why it is so important to push correctly during childbirth, and in the pushing period to listen, to be in contact with the doctor and midwife! Over time, all these birth injuries of a newborn child disappear without requiring treatment. But, after discharge from the hospital, doctors still recommend showing the baby to an ophthalmologist to assess the degree of this hemorrhage.
The circumference of the head and chest of a child up to a year.
The head circumference of a newborn fetus is a very important anthropometric indicator, on the basis of which the degree of growth of the child is subsequently monitored. When compared with the data recorded by the neonatologist after the birth of the baby, the doctor of the children's clinic can later identify, for example, the developing hydrocephalic syndrome in the baby: there are no clinical manifestations yet, but for some reason the head began to grow rapidly. If the figures after measuring the growth of the child's head circumference up to a year do not correspond to age indicators, the norm, this worries the doctor, who sends the baby for a consultation with a specialist so as not to miss the moment when you can start treatment and achieve complete recovery.
Medium head circumference at birth- about 35 centimeters (the magnitude of the fluctuation of the norm is 32 - 38 cm.)
- Table of head circumference in a newborn child up to a year (normal fluctuations): At 1 month - 37 cm (35 - 40 cm);
At 2 months - 38 cm (36 - 41 cm);
At 3 months - 40 cm (38 - 43 cm);
At 4 months - 41 cm (39 - 44 cm);
At 5 months - 42 cm (40 - 45 cm);
At 6 months - 44 cm (41 - 46 cm);
At 7 months - 45 cm (42 - 47 cm);
At 9 months - 45 cm (43 - 48 cm);
At 10 months - 46 cm (44 - 49 cm);
At 12 months (1 year) - 47 cm (44 - 50 cm).
In a newborn fetus, the circumference of the head is approximately 2 centimeters larger than the circumference of the chest. At the 4th month, the size of the head circumference of a newborn baby and the size of the chest converge or equalize. At the 12th month, the size of the chest in a newborn baby becomes about 2 centimeters larger than the circumference of the head.
Average chest size at birth- about 33 centimeters (the magnitude of the fluctuation of the norm is 33.5 - 36 centimeters.
- Table of chest size in a newborn child up to a year (normal fluctuations): At 1 month - 35 - 38 cm;
At 2 months - 37 - 40 cm;
At 3 months - 38.4 - 42.1 cm;
At 4 months - 39.8 - 43.5 cm;
At 5 months - 41 - 45 cm;
At 6 months - 42.4 - 46.3 cm;
At 7 months - 43.4 - 47.5 cm;
At 8 months - 44.4 - 48.5 cm;
At 9 months - 45.2 - 49.3 cm;
At 10 months - 46 - 50 cm;
At 12 months (1 year) - 47 - 51.2 cm.
The skin of a newborn baby.
Appearance of the baby's skin.
In the first 30-40 seconds after birth, the baby's skin is cyanotic (bluish). This is due to a short-term cessation of blood flow through the umbilical cord and the inclusion of the lungs. When the baby begins to breathe, he turns pink.
Is there blood on the baby? No need to panic. This is the mother's blood, which remained on the baby's skin when he passed through the birth canal.
APGAR scale was proposed by the American doctor Virginia Apgar to assess the condition of the child at birth. The doctor diagnoses whether the child has experienced acute hypoxia (oxygen starvation). According to the APGAR scale, 5 parameters are evaluated: skin color, breathing, heartbeat, muscle tone and reflexes of the newborn.
APGAR scale
color of the skin
cyanotic limbs
pink, red
absent
slow, uneven
good crying loud
heartbeat
absent
less
120 bpm
more
120 bpm
reflexes
missing
slight grimace
coughing, sneezing, screaming
muscle tone
absent
limbs bent
actively moves body parts
A normal Apgar score is 7 to 10. When assessed on the APGAR scale of 6 points or less, they speak of acute intranatal fetal hypoxia, that is, oxygen starvation that the child experienced during childbirth. The lower the APGAR score, the more severe the child's condition.
But this is not a sentence. After all, newborn babies are the most grateful patients: the more often doctors begin to take action, the better and faster results they achieve. But it is always important for doctors to know what they may face in childbirth. That is why, when a woman in labor is admitted, her exchange card is studied. Doctors evaluate possible risk factors and predict the course of childbirth. If a woman in labor with a high risk of developing acute hypoxia in a child enters the maternity hospital, a resuscitator comes to these births in order to immediately provide the newborn with the necessary resuscitation assistance if necessary.
Reflexes of a newborn child.
In the delivery room, doctors do not require the child to perform all the unconditioned reflexes of newborns. First of all, the baby's reaction to examination, to manipulations, to the nasal catheter is evaluated when suctioning mucus from the nose or removing it with a swab from the mouth. The most important innate unconditioned reflexes are also evaluated:
- reflex of oral automatism, when, when pressing the palms, the baby opens its mouth;
crawling reflex - the baby is placed on the tummy, pushed under the feet, and he begins to crawl;
support reflex - the baby is held vertically, and he stands on his legs;
stepping reflex - the baby starts to walk;
suspension reflex - the baby lying on its back is put into the palms of its hands, it clings to them and holds on when it is slightly lifted.
Doctors do not recommend mothers to check reflexes on their own, only a specialist should do this. Although from the outside it seems that it is easy and simple! Not knowing the correct examination technique, a mother can harm her child.
The breath of a newborn baby.
Lung crumbs have a small volume, the respiratory rate of a newborn child is 40-60 times per minute, at 6 months - 35-40 times, at 12 months - 30-35 times.
The heartbeat of a newborn baby.
The metabolism of an infant is very intense, and the volume of blood ejected by the heart during one contraction is quite small. This is offset by a high heart rate. The norm of the fetal heart rate in a newborn child is up to 140 beats per minute, in an infant of the 2-12th month of life - 110-130 beats per minute.
Urination of a newborn baby.
On the 1st-2nd day, the diuresis of a newborn child is low: he can urinate only 2-3 times a day. After 5-7 days, the frequency of urination in the baby averages about 15-20 times a day. Stool in infants in the first month of life (when breastfeeding) - from 6 to 10 times, which very often corresponds to the number of feedings of the baby.
Fetal nutrition.
Previously, it was believed that in utero the baby is fed only through the umbilical cord, thus receiving all the necessary nutrients. But where does meconium, the original stool, come from? It turns out that there is also a second source of nutrition for the fetus - amniotrophic.
Amniotrophic type of nutrition is the ingestion of amniotic fluid by the child, as a result of which nutrients, which are very rich in amniotic fluid, are absorbed through the mucosa of the gastrointestinal tract. The baby begins to swallow amniotic fluid from 8 weeks of intrauterine life, and the breakdown of nutrients in his digestive tract begins.
This discovery was made by scientists quite recently. And after that, another important conclusion was made: amniotrophic nutrition contributes to a better transition to breastfeeding. After all, in utero there is a constant training of the gastrointestinal tract, preparation for the fact that when the baby is born, he will eat differently. In addition, there is a dependence of the nutrient content in the amniotic fluid, maternal blood and colostrum. In composition, they are very close, and the closer to childbirth, the more amniotic fluid is similar in terms of a set of fats, proteins, carbohydrates and minerals to colostrum.
There are new data on the composition of breast milk, this unique source of health and growth for your baby. Colostrum and mother's milk contain a complete set of enzymes that ensure the digestion of the newborn. Moreover, mother's milk contains, among other things, those enzymes that help the child break down mother's milk itself. That is, nature not only gives the child food, but also helps to assimilate this food - milk helps to digest itself! Moreover, the maximum content of enzymes responsible for the assimilation of milk is found in colostrum immediately after childbirth. The older the child, the less these enzymes become, because the baby's body itself begins to break down milk well, its own enzymatic systems mature and start.
From the moment the baby is born, doctors perform a lot of manipulations with him, one of which is measuring the volume of the newborn's head. This figure can tell a lot to pediatricians. In order to prevent the development of certain dangerous diseases in a child in time, parents themselves can determine the size of the head circumference of their child.
How is a child born?
The newborn in the first days there is a slight swelling of the head. This is a completely normal phenomenon, which should not be afraid. The tumor occurs due to the stress experienced during passage through the birth canal. Since a baby is normally born head first, the skull takes the brunt of the load. A couple of days after birth, the swelling disappears.
Depending on the anatomical structure of the maternal organism, two forms of the skull of a newborn are distinguished:
- tower, similar to an oval;
- brachycephalic, rounded, with tubercles on the forehead.
If during childbirth a child has a slight shift of the cranial bones, do not worry. This phenomenon is also considered normal. Gradually, the bones will fall into place on their own.
Much more dangerous may be the discrepancy between the growth of the volume of the head of a newborn and medical standards. This fact can become a symptom of dangerous diseases.
How to take measurements?
The volume of the head of a newborn is usually a couple of centimeters larger than the size of the chest and averages 33-34 cm. For boys and girls, these figures may differ: in girls, the head circumference is naturally smaller than in boys.
Within a month, the volume of the head of a newborn increases by 2-3 cm. Already at 3-4 months, the indicators of the circumference of the head and chest will become equal, but by the age of six months, the growth of the chest will outstrip the size of the head. If at 4-6 months the growth of the skull is about 1 cm, then after 6 months it will grow no more than half a centimeter monthly.
The table below will give a complete picture of what the size of a newborn's head should be by month.
Table
| Age | Extreme points of growth | Average volume |
| 1 month | 34-40 cm | 37 cm |
| 2 months | 35-41 cm | 38 cm |
| 3 months | 37-43 cm | 40 cm |
| 4 months | 38-44 cm | 41 cm |
| 5 months | 39-45 cm | 42 cm |
| 6 months | 40-46 cm | 44 cm |
| 7 months | 41-47 cm | 45 cm |
| 9 months | 42-48 cm | 45 cm |
| 10 months | 43-49 cm | 46 cm |
| 12 months | 45-50 cm | 47 cm |
The table is indicative, because the development of the child occurs individually, however, significant deviations cannot be ignored by the doctor.
When should you sound the alarm?
The rapid growth of the head of a newborn in the first months and a clear discrepancy with the norm may be a sign of hydrocephalus. The disease lies in the fact that too much fluid accumulates in the spinal cord, which presses on the skull. A child whose head is too large should be under the constant supervision of a neurologist.
In medicine, the reverse process is also known, when the head circumference is less than the required norm. This disease is called microcephaly and can be diagnosed during pregnancy. In this case, the woman is given an abortion for medical reasons.
If microcephaly develops in a born child, it requires immediate complex treatment.
How to measure the volume of the head yourself?
Parents can determine the size of their child's head themselves without consulting a doctor. To do this, you need to take an elastic tape, on which centimeter divisions are applied. If there is none at home, use ordinary braid or tape. Grab the head of the child with a tape at the level of the eyebrows and fix the meeting point of both ends. If you use a tape without divisions, you can measure the resulting segment with a ruler.
During the procedure, the baby must be absolutely calm, otherwise the measurements obtained will be inaccurate. Thanks to such a simple manipulation, parents will be able to control the physical development of their baby and be the first to “sound the alarm” if something went wrong.
The size of the head circumference is an important indicator of the health of the newborn, which should not be ignored. Thanks to him, it is possible to prevent and treat many serious diseases in time.
After all, the first month of a child's life becomes the first critical period for him after birth: it is characterized by the intense work of all organs and systems of the body, "responsible" for the adaptation (adaptation) of the newborn to fundamentally new environmental conditions for him. By the end of this period, all transient processes should be completed, however, under the influence of adverse environmental conditions, with a burdened course of pregnancy and childbirth, the adaptive processes natural for the newborn can take a pathological direction and lead to a neurological disease of the child.
It is at this time that it is necessary to visit a neurologist for the first time - usually just to make sure: the baby is all right; but if this is not so - in order to identify, "capture" the pathology at the very beginning, to prevent the disease from developing. To determine the level of development of the child and exclude neurological pathology, it is important not only to assess the formed reactions to light, sound, motor and psycho-emotional activity of the newborn, but also its appearance (in fact, this last topic will be mainly devoted to my article).
So, what will the neurologist first of all pay attention to when examining a one-month-old baby? On the shape and size of his skull, facial expression, posture, type of skin. Why is it so important? Why are our worries and experiences often associated with the presence of deviations precisely from the appearance of the child, especially if this is a change in the shape and size of the skull? This is primarily due to the fact that such changes can be a diagnostic sign of serious diseases - hydrocephalus and microcephaly.
The shape and size of the skull - a possible pathology
Hydrocephalus - this is an excessive increase in the size of the skull, fontanelles, caused by an increase in the amount of cerebrospinal fluid in the cranial cavity. With this disease, the shape of the skull also changes - its brain section significantly predominates over the front, the frontal part sharply protrudes forward, a pronounced venous network is observed in the temples and forehead.
Microcephaly - this is a decrease in the size of the skull and early closure of the fontanelles. In congenital microcephaly, the size of the skull is small from birth, the cranial sutures are narrowed, the fontanelles are either closed or small. In the future, a slower rate of increase in head circumference is noted, so that sometimes in a child of 2-3 years old, the dimensions of the skull are almost the same as at birth. With microcephaly, the skull has a specific shape: the brain region of the skull is smaller than the front, the forehead is small, sloping, the line of the forehead and nose is oblique.
Conditions such as hydro- and microcephaly further lead to a delay in mental and physical development and therefore require correction from a very early age!
...or a reason for further examinations?
But is any deviation from the norm unambiguously indicative of a pathological condition? Of course not! Clinical observations show that there are many factors that influence the shape and size of the head. Of course, even a slight increase or decrease in the circumference of the skull in a newborn compared to the age norm can be considered a risk factor for the development of hydrocephalus or microcephaly, but one should not panic when one finds that the baby’s head is slightly larger or smaller than normal: this circumstance should first of all, to become a signal for the need for additional examinations to exclude pathological conditions. What are these surveys?
- Absolutely safe and reliable method is neurosonography(ultrasound examination of the brain through a large fontanel). This study will help not only to see changes in the structure of the brain and signs of increased intracranial pressure, but also to assess blood flow through the main vessels of the brain.
- An even more reliable method is nuclear magnetic resonance of the brain (NMR), however, this study for babies is carried out under general anesthesia, therefore, it is carried out only for sufficiently strong indications.
- In this case, consultations of an oculist and a neurosurgeon are also necessary.
"Homework" for parents
In addition, right from birth, you can independently control increase in head circumference, which is one of the main indicators of norm and pathology. How to do it correctly?
- Weekly measure the circumference of the child's head and record the figures obtained in a specially wound notebook.
- When measuring, place the centimeter tape along the most protruding points of the skull (frontal and occipital tubercles).
- To avoid misunderstandings, the measurement should be carried out by the same person.
In addition to the increase in head circumference, you can control increase in chest circumference, which is one of the general anthropometric indicators of a child's development. For this:
- measure your chest circumference weekly on the same day you measure your head circumference;
- Place the measuring tape at the level of the baby's nipple line.
Why do we need such "self-activity"? Carrying out these simple measurements, you will help the doctor to draw up an objective picture of the development of the child, and you yourself can be calm, eliminating the possibility of developing serious diseases (normally, the monthly increase in head circumference for the first three months in a full-term baby should not exceed 2 cm per month; up to a year, the circumference the chest is approximately 1 cm larger than the circumference of the child's head).
Well, now a few words about what can and should be normal, and what is a pathology. I tried to present a conversation on this topic in the form of answers to questions that most often concern young parents.
What determines the shape of the skull of a newborn?
Normally, when a child passes through the birth canal, the bones of the skull overlap each other. Features of the course of the birth process affect the change in the shape of the skull. With a complicated birth act, a sharp finding of the bones of the skull on top of each other may occur, and this will lead to its deformation, which will persist for quite a long time.
The change in the shape of the skull can be expressed in the preservation swelling soft tissues of the head in the place where the child moved forward along the birth canal. The swelling disappears within the first 2-3 days. cephalohematoma(hemorrhage under the periosteum) also changes the shape of the skull. It resolves more slowly than swelling, and this process requires the supervision of specialists (neurologist, surgeon).
The change in the shape of the skull is also associated with age-related features. In a newborn, the skull is elongated in the anterior-posterior direction, and after a few months the transverse size of the skull will increase, and its shape will change.
Some change in the shape and size of the skull can also occur during normal development in premature babies, or when the child is often laid on the same side, or when the child is lying on his back for a long time.
How does a newborn's head grow?
In a newborn, the average head circumference is 35.5 cm (the range of 33.0-37.5 cm is considered normal). The most intensive increase in head circumference in full-term children is observed in the first 3 months - on average, it is 1.5 cm for each month. Then the growth decreases slightly, and by the year the child's head circumference is on average 46.6 cm (normal limits 44.9 - 48.9 cm).
The head circumference of a premature baby increases faster than that of a full-term baby, and the increase is most pronounced during the period of active weight gain, and by the end of the 1st year of life it reaches normal values. The exception is very premature babies.
However, it should always be borne in mind that even with the normal development of the child, there may be physiological deviations from the average values, which are often associated with constitutional features or environmental influences.
What is a fontanel in a child?
Fontanelles are located in the area of convergence of the bones of the skull. Front, big , the fontanel is located between the frontal and parietal bones. At birth, it measures from 2.5 to 3.5 cm, then gradually decreases by 6 months and closes at 8-16 months. Rear, small , the fontanel is located between the parietal and occipital bones. It is small and closes by 2-3 months of life.
In pathological processes accompanied by an increase in intracranial pressure, the fontanelles close later, and it happens that they open again. The small size of the anterior fontanel may be a variant of the norm if they are not accompanied by a decrease in the circumference of the skull, its growth rate, and a delay in psychomotor development.
The above signs do not limit the whole variety of possible deviations in a young child. However, it should be borne in mind that any unusual variant of the child's appearance requires careful examination and monitoring of his growth and development.
When and how should a neurologist examine a child?
The development of a young child is a very sensitive sign of the state of the body. It depends both on hereditary characteristics and on a complex set of social conditions and requires the dynamic supervision of doctors. Do not forget to show your baby to specialists on time - 1, 3, 6, 12 months!
If you invite a specialist to your home, then you need to consider the following:
- examination of the child should be carried out on a changing table or other soft, but not sagging surface;
- the environment should be calm, if possible, eliminate distractions;
- inspection is desirable to be carried out 1.5-2 hours after feeding;
- the air temperature in the room should be about 25 ° C, the lighting should be bright, but not annoying.
In conclusion of the article, I want to remind you once again: do not postpone a visit to a neurologist, remember that the timeliness of all health-improving, preventive and therapeutic measures aimed at ensuring its normal development depends on the correct assessment of the state of health of the newborn, and only a specialist is able to give a correct assessment!
The main purpose of clothing is to protect the human body from hypothermia in winter or summer. In accordance with this, parents select a wardrobe for the baby. Everything is very important in a set of children's clothing, but protecting the child's head safely and carefully is a paramount task. When choosing a hat, parents should consider the season, the size of the child's head, gender and age.
Season and children's hat
In winter, it is necessary to protect the child from colds, therefore, synthetic winterizer, fleece are used for sewing winter hats. When choosing such wardrobe items, choose the larger one from two suitable sizes.
For sewing summer hats, lightweight textiles, straw, and lace are used. Panamas, hats, baseball caps should protect from the scorching sun, so wide visors and fields are relevant in summer models. When buying a summer headdress, out of two suitable ones, choose the one that is smaller. This principle allows you to choose a panama hat that will repeat the size of the child's head.
In autumn and spring, hats made of felt, leather, and wool are good. An original and practical invention is a raincoat, it helps to keep warm in any bad weather very well.
child by age
An ideal option for infants are hats made from natural materials. Ties should be provided on the product, since fixing such models on the baby's head is simply necessary. Especially when the baby stubbornly does not want to leave a hat on his head (he is not interested in the weather).
The time comes when the child grows up, he gets on skates, skateboard, sits on a bicycle. Will protect the head of the child during sports activities of the head of the child - the main indicator when buying it. When choosing a hat for a teenager, they play the role of decoration (in the first place), so different models of hats, skullcaps, sombreros are possible. At this age, children have unique hats created by their own hands.
Hats for girls and boys
When choosing a wardrobe for a baby or an older child, you must always remember that he is not just a child, but a girl or a boy (this is important!). Teach, educate, love and dress them differently from infancy.
Hats, hats and panama hats can be considered as an ornament, an addition to clothes, so what suits a girl will not always please a boy. Little ladies are very fond of having their hats decorated with flowers, bows, beads. It's not bad. The main thing is that everything should be in moderation. Sometimes girls can be seen in caps, it looks stylish. A classic-shaped beret on a boy will also make his appearance attractive. Both girls and boys really like baseball caps, they emphasize their positive attitude towards sports.
Children's head sizes - table
The size of the child's head will help determine which hat to choose. Measurement points: just above the eyebrows, slightly above the ears and at the most prominent point on the back of the head. Sometimes you have to buy hats in advance, then you need to know the size of the head in children. The table below will help parents navigate in determining the size of the child's head by age and height.
Age | Height | Size g. ub. = env. Goal. |
Newborn | ||
All dimensions are in centimeters.
Every organ in our body is very important. It is very difficult to live without arms, without legs, it is impossible to live without a heart. And who is in charge of our entire body? Of course, the head. Do you know the saying: "Bread is the head of everything"? From this proverb it is clear that the head is the most important thing.
The brain is located in the head, which is responsible for the work of our entire body. If there are any changes in the brain, this immediately affects the activity of the whole organism. The regulation of the body occurs with the help of nerve impulses (nerve endings of the brain) and with the help of special chemicals (pituitary gland) - humoral regulation.
Many animals within a few hours after birth are able to move independently and even look for food. Our children remain completely helpless for many months. Why is this happening? Everything is very simple: man is a highly organized, social animal. This means that the human body in the process of life learns to perform a large number of different activities: talk, get food, walk, and much more. It is impossible to get all this knowledge at once, so a person learns from the example of other people how to survive in this world (social factor). In addition to the social skills acquired by a child in the process of life, there is also an innate memory, the experience of previous generations. Such a memory protects us from death (self-preservation instinct). We instinctively fear fire, snakes, and bright red insects, even though no one has ever bitten us before. In addition to the instinct of self-preservation, the child inherits from his ancestors other reflexes and instincts. So, newborn children have a search reflex, they instinctively look for food. If a newborn baby is placed on the mother's stomach, he will crawl to the breast on his own and begin to suck milk.
Why shouldn't we be born already able to walk and talk? It's simple: for this, the child must be in the womb for too long. If the baby develops too long in the mother's womb, the bones will harden and the bones of the skull will lose their mobility. In this case, the child's skull loses its ability to change volume, which makes it difficult for the head to pass through the woman's pelvis, whose bones are tightly fused and do not move.
After birth, the child begins to develop rapidly. At the same time, doctors distinguish physical and mental development.
The size and circumference of the child's head
Norm
Physical development is understood as the intensity of the increase in height, weight of the child, head and chest circumference. These indicators are evaluated in combination. The circumference of the head at the birth of a child ranges from 29 to 34 cm. The size of the head with various congenital pathologies can change both up and down. In conditions such as microcephaly (small head), chronic intrauterine fetal hypoxia (reduced oxygen supply through the placenta during pregnancy), chronic nicotine intoxication (conditions when the mother smoked too much during pregnancy), a decrease in head size is observed.
The extreme degree of such conditions is anencefoliya (absence of the head). It can be observed in the fetus with hereditary pathologies, viral infections (rubella, chicken pox) during pregnancy. To identify such conditions, it is necessary to conduct an ultrasound examination of the fetus in the early stages of its development.
With endocrine disorders on the part of the mother (diabetes mellitus, hyperthyroidism), there are changes in the size of the head in the direction of increase. An increase in the size of the head makes it difficult to give birth through natural routes, since the baby's head cannot pass through the woman's pelvis. In such cases, a caesarean section is performed.
In the first year of life, the size of the head increases quite intensively. In no other period of a child's life is there such a rapid change in growth, weight, head and chest volumes. In the first six months, the size of the head increases by an average of 1.5 cm, after six months - by 0.5 cm per month. The intensity of changes in head size can vary in different months in different children. These can be both physiological and pathological changes.
With physiological changes in the intensity of head growth, the volume of the head remains within centile values. Centile tables are the average value of the indicators of the physical development of children in different periods of life. These tables reflect the compliance of the volume of the child's head with age norms: centile tables for boys, centile tables for girls.
When examining a child in a clinic, a pediatrician evaluates not only how much the child's head size has increased, but also whether these sizes correspond to the age norm. If a child is born with a large head volume, then in the process of development he may experience a less intense increase in head size. If the child has a small head, then the increase in head volume in such children will be more intense. Normally, by the year, all children are aligned, and the head size is about 44 cm.
But nothing can be said only by the size of the head, the ratio of the size of the head and chest is important. With pathological changes in the intensity of the growth of the head circumference, both a pathological acceleration of the increase in the volume of the head compared to the volume of the chest, and a pathological slowdown can be observed.
Baby has a big head
An increase in the intensity of the growth of head circumference is very often observed in a condition such as hydrocephalus. This condition can develop in premature babies, children born in asphyxia, children with intrauterine hypoxia. In this case, the brain is damaged, and fluid begins to accumulate in the cranium. The accumulation of fluid leads to an increase in the volume of the intracranial box and, as a result, an increase in the size of the child's head. The fontanelles of the child do not grow well, they can bulge, pulsate, especially when the child cries. Since the edema is localized in the brain, the child's cerebral part of the skull predominates over the facial part. Another sign of hydrocephalus in a child is an increase in the volume of the head in relation to the volume of the chest. Normally, the intensity of the increase in the volume of the breast exceeds the intensity of the increase in the volume of the head. With hydrocephalus, the volume of the head can be equal to or greater than the volume of the chest. To clarify the diagnosis, it is necessary to conduct an ultrasound examination of the brain, which reveals the accumulation of fluid in the brain, an increase in brain chambers. Children with this condition should be seen by a neurologist. They are prescribed diuretic drugs (furasemide) and drugs to improve brain nutrition (piracetam, nootropil). General massage is recommended for children. After the treatment, children develop in the same way as their peers, no long-term effects are observed. In the absence of treatment, children lag behind their peers in mental development, they start talking, sitting, walking late.
small baby head
Decrease in the intensity of head growth is most often observed with genetic diseases. In addition to head growth retardation, such children may also have other congenital malformations: cleft lip, hard palate, soft palate, fused fingers or toes, six-fingered hands or feet, and others. In such conditions, consultation with a geneticist is mandatory. Treatment is carried out in accordance with the identified congenital anomalies. The prognosis is not always favorable and depends on the degree of brain damage.
Assessment of brain maturity
In addition to the physical development at the reception, the doctor also evaluates the mental development of the child. The mental development of the child characterizes the maturity of the child's brain and the child's adaptability to life in the environment. Certain signs should appear or disappear in a child by specific dates. If the sign did not appear or disappear, then this indicates the immaturity of the brain.
So the child should smile by a month, by two - it’s good to keep his head in a position on his stomach, and by six months the child’s innate reflexes (automatic walking, oral automatism, and others) should completely disappear.
If a child lags behind in mental development, it is necessary to exclude brain diseases. This requires a consultation with a neurologist and an ultrasound examination of the brain. To treat children with mental retardation, it is necessary to treat the condition that caused the brain damage. It is very important to use drugs that improve brain nutrition (piracetam, nootropil). In severe cases, when it is difficult to make a diagnosis, it is also necessary to consult a geneticist, since this condition very often accompanies hereditary diseases.
Head shape in children
In addition to changes in the size of the head, changes in its shape can be observed. Very often with rickets there is a flattening of the head or its one-sided deformation (on the side where the child lies most of all). In this condition, calcium is washed out of the bones, they soften and are more easily deformed. In this case, it is necessary to use vitamin D3 in a therapeutic dose (1500-3000 IU). To prevent rickets, a child should be given daily vitamin D3 in a prophylactic dose (500 IU) for up to two years, excluding the summer months (June, July and August).
The baby's head is sweating
Very often, with endocrine diseases, especially with damage to the thyroid gland, children may experience increased sweating of the head. In this case, you need to consult an endocrinologist, take a blood test for thyroid hormones. Sweating can also be observed with the deficiency of vitamin D described above.
Crusts on the child's head
At birth, various substances remain on the skin of the child that helped the child develop inside the uterus. Because of this, a crust can form on the scalp. This crust can be either in the form of separate small formations or completely cover the entire head. This condition is not a pathology and does not require special treatment. The only thing a child needs is hygienic care of the scalp. All crusts must be lubricated with petroleum jelly, which softens them, and then carefully removed with a cotton swab. This operation must be carried out daily for 5-7 days.
Pediatrician Litashov M.V.