{"id":6405,"date":"2019-01-18T15:26:40","date_gmt":"2019-01-18T20:26:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.med.unc.edu\/neurosurgery\/?page_id=6405"},"modified":"2019-01-22T14:57:02","modified_gmt":"2019-01-22T19:57:02","slug":"macrocephaly-or-big-head","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.med.unc.edu\/neurosurgery\/services\/pedsneuro\/macrocephaly-or-big-head\/","title":{"rendered":"Macrocephaly or \u201cBig Head\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-6407 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/www.med.unc.edu\/neurosurgery\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/460\/2019\/01\/macrocephalic-baby-v2.png\" alt=\"Macrocephalic Baby\" width=\"200\" height=\"338\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.med.unc.edu\/neurosurgery\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/460\/2019\/01\/macrocephalic-baby-v2.png 1404w, https:\/\/www.med.unc.edu\/neurosurgery\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/460\/2019\/01\/macrocephalic-baby-v2-177x300.png 177w, https:\/\/www.med.unc.edu\/neurosurgery\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/460\/2019\/01\/macrocephalic-baby-v2-768x1300.png 768w, https:\/\/www.med.unc.edu\/neurosurgery\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/460\/2019\/01\/macrocephalic-baby-v2-605x1024.png 605w, https:\/\/www.med.unc.edu\/neurosurgery\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/460\/2019\/01\/macrocephalic-baby-v2-303x512.png 303w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/>Evaluation of a baby&#8217;s \u201cbig head\u201d is one of the most common referrals made to pediatric neurosurgeons.<\/p>\n<p>Macrocephaly refers to a head circumference (the measurement around the widest part of the head) that is greater than the 98th percentile on the growth chart.<\/p>\n<p>Primary care physicians may refer to the pediatric neurosurgeon based on your child\u2019s increasing head circumference<\/p>\n<p>Causes of macrocephaly include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Benign familial macrocephaly \u2013 other family members with big heads (inherited)<\/li>\n<li>Excess fluid in the brain \u2013 benign extra-axial fluid of infancy or hydrocephalus<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If your child is not showing signs or symptoms of increasing intracranial pressure such as a tense, bulging anterior fontanelle (soft spot), unusual eye movements, projectile vomiting, increasing irritability or a high-pitched cry, then a follow-up appointment in three months with the pediatric neurosurgeon may be recommended.<\/p>\n<p>If needed, imaging studies such as a head ultrasound, head CT scan or quick brain MRI may show:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Benign extra-axial fluid of infancy \u2013 a thin layer of cerebral spinal fluid between the brain &amp; skull. This condition usually resolves over time.<\/li>\n<li>Hydrocephalus \u2013 increased cerebral spinal fluid within the ventricle spaces in the brain. This condition may require surgical intervention.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>To schedule an appointment with UNC Pediatric Neurosurgery, please call (919) 445-2410.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_6415\" class=\"thumbnail wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"width: 165px\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-6415\" src=\"https:\/\/www.med.unc.edu\/neurosurgery\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/460\/2019\/01\/Melody3.jpg\" alt=\"Melody Watral, CPNP-PC, CPON\" width=\"155\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.med.unc.edu\/neurosurgery\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/460\/2019\/01\/Melody3.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.med.unc.edu\/neurosurgery\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/460\/2019\/01\/Melody3-232x300.jpg 232w, https:\/\/www.med.unc.edu\/neurosurgery\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/460\/2019\/01\/Melody3-396x512.jpg 396w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 155px) 100vw, 155px\" \/><figcaption class=\"caption wp-caption-text\">Melody Watral, CPNP-PC, CPON<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Evaluation of a baby&#8217;s \u201cbig head\u201d is one of the most common referrals made to pediatric neurosurgeons. Macrocephaly refers to a head circumference (the measurement around the widest part of the head) that is greater than the 98th percentile on the growth chart. Primary care physicians may refer to the pediatric neurosurgeon based on your &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.med.unc.edu\/neurosurgery\/services\/pedsneuro\/macrocephaly-or-big-head\/\" aria-label=\"Read more about Macrocephaly or \u201cBig Head\u201d\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":58435,"featured_media":0,"parent":87,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"layout":"","cellInformation":"","apiCallInformation":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"class_list":["post-6405","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","odd"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Macrocephaly or \u201cBig Head\u201d | Department of Neurosurgery<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.med.unc.edu\/neurosurgery\/services\/pedsneuro\/pediatric-neurosurgery-blog__trashed\/macrocephaly-or-big-head\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Macrocephaly or \u201cBig Head\u201d | Department of Neurosurgery\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Evaluation of a baby&#8217;s \u201cbig head\u201d is one of the most common referrals made to pediatric neurosurgeons. 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