macrocephaly
Sign in to saveMacrocephaly is a condition in which circumference of the human head is abnormally large. It may be pathological or harmless, and can be a familial genetic characteristic. People diagnosed with macrocephaly will receive further medical tests to determine whether the syndrome is accompanied by particular disorders. Those with benign or familial macrocephaly are considered to have megalencephaly.
Key facts
- Medical condition (new).name
- Macrocephaly
- Medical condition (new).image
- Parasagittal MRI of human head in patient with benign familial macrocephaly prior to brain injury (ANIMATED).gif
via Wikipedia infobox
Article
13 sectionsContents
- Causes
- Diagnosis
- Benign or familial macrocephaly
- Other forms
- Treatment
- Associated syndromes
- Include multiple major and or minor anomalies
- Secondary to a metabolic disorder
- Associated with a skeletal dysplasia
- With no obvious physical findings
- See also
- References
- External links
Macrocephaly is a condition in which circumference of the human head is abnormally large. It may be pathological or harmless, and can be a familial genetic characteristic. People diagnosed with macrocephaly will receive further medical tests to determine whether the syndrome is accompanied by particular disorders. Those with benign or familial macrocephaly are considered to have megalencephaly.
==Causes== Many people with abnormally large heads or large skulls are healthy, but macrocephaly may be pathological. Pathologic macrocephaly may be due to megalencephaly (enlarged brain), hydrocephalus (abnormally increased cerebrospinal fluid), cranial hyperostosis (bone overgrowth), and other conditions. Pathologic macrocephaly is called "syndromic", when it is associated with any other noteworthy condition, and "nonsyndromic" otherwise. Pathologic macrocephaly may be caused by congenital anatomic abnormalities, genetic conditions, or by environmental events.