# doc worried about DD's head circumference???



## Llyra (Jan 16, 2005)

My DD2 started life as a very small baby. She was born at under 5 1/2 pounds. She's a twin, and was a tad preterm, and we suspect a little restricted for space because DS was transverse and on top of her. Anyway, she's grown steadily up the curves since then, so that now her weight is above 25th percentile and her height above 50th. But today I took her to the ped for a well visit, and they're worried about her head circumference. Apparently her head started at about the 10th percentile, and now it's approaching 90th.

Well, the doc actually said, "I'm not worried. I just think it's worth keeping an eye on." She wants me to bring DD back in a month so we can measure it again. She was very clear that I was not to worry, and that it was reassuring that ALL of DD's growth has gone up on the curves steadily. When I looked at the head circumference curve, I could see that DD's head hasn't just suddenly shot up in size. It's been growing at a steady rate-- 25th at 6 months, near 50th at 9 months, etc.

But now my mama imagination is working overtime wondering if there's something wrong. What does it mean, if the head grows "too fast?" Please help me not to panic! I'm a worrier by nature, especially with DD2 who's never been the healthiest of my crew.


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## mrs_mandolini (Feb 23, 2007)

How big are your & dad's heads? There are 2 reasons for a big head... genetics, or hydrocephalus (that's what the dr wants to watch for.)

The gradual, steady growth you are seeing sounds to ME like catching up. How old is your child?

My son had a 54 cm head by 9 months old. There are ADULTS who have smaller heads than that. His took a jump off the charts around 3 months of age. His dad has a huge head, normal hats don't fit him. My son can wear adult winter hats (the stretchy kind) and has been since 9 months old.

Our dr. sent us for an ultrasound, and since he was so young they were able to do it through the soft spot. It was perfectly normal, lots of worrying for nothing.

If you're a googler, the medical name for this is "benign enlargement of the subarachnoid spaces." And it probably means your child will be smart!!

I am not a dr, but I believe that if your child truly did have a problem, you would be seeing other issues. If you read about hydrocephalus, the head enlargement is even more rapid, and there are generally headaches, seizures, developmental delays, etc.


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## didkisa (Jun 15, 2005)

My DD is the same way and it took me some time to stop worrying. Her body is in the 5-10th percentile and her head is 90-95th. She got daddy's head and mommy's body.







Does anyone in either family have a big head or Irish blood (cuz apparently, according to our ped, they have big heads)? As long as she's reaching all her milestones, no apparent issues (like seizures or falling down a lot), and happy she's probably just fine. BTW, my DD's head growth does finally seem to be peaking. It's all those brains in there!


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## ~*Guest (Dec 31, 2006)

my dd is the same way. at 12 months she was 10th percentile for weight and 100th percentile for head size.


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## whateverdidiwants (Jan 2, 2003)

Please keep watching this, and if the doc sends her for tests, please do it. A mama on here recently lost her son to a brain tumor, and changes in head circumference was one of the signs that something was wrong.


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## MPsSweetie (Jan 29, 2006)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *whateverdidiwants* 
Please keep watching this, and if the doc sends her for tests, please do it. A mama on here recently lost her son to a brain tumor, and changes in head circumference was one of the signs that something was wrong.

Yes, this!!


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## Kessed (Nov 28, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *whateverdidiwants* 
Please keep watching this, and if the doc sends her for tests, please do it. A mama on here recently lost her son to a brain tumor, and changes in head circumference was one of the signs that something was wrong.

This!!!

Doctors worry about this stuff for a reason.


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## guestmama9916 (Jun 24, 2006)

A rapid increase in head circumference has also been linked to autism.

http://www.protectingourhealth.org/n...chesneetal.htm

Quote:

Courchesne et al. present data linking autism to an unusual pattern of brain growth shortly after birth. Infants who later develop autism have a slightly reduced head circumference at birth, compared to normal infants, but undergo a rapid spurt in growth during the first two years of life. This growth spurt is so strong that by the age of 3-4, when behavioral signs of autism are just beginning to show, autistic children's brains are larger than normal.


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## dbsam (Mar 3, 2007)

My children, twins born at 33 weeks, have heads that have been off the growth charts ever since they caught up from their preemie size - at about four months. Although both children had heads equally large, when my daughter was younger the doctors suggested a CT scan of her head - all was fine. In our case it wasn't a sudden increase in head circumference; they are consistently large.

Although it is probably nothing, as pp's mentioned, I would keep an eye on it.
I just pulled my children's growth charts to give you some comparison (my kids are almost four and although they have a few medical issues - nothing is related to head size.)&#8230;

Son&#8230;5th% at 2 months, 25th% at 3 months, and >97th% ever since 4 months

Daughter&#8230; 5th% at 1 month, 50% at 2 months, 90th% at 4 months, and >97th% ever since 6 months


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## sparklett (Nov 25, 2006)

Ds has a huge head and a tiny body. Yes, we're watching it, but DH's entire family has ginormous heads, so we're not too concerned.

I just tell people that he has his dady's huge head so he has enough space for his mommy's huge brain!


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## Llyra (Jan 16, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *mrs_mandolini* 
How big are your & dad's heads?

The gradual, steady growth you are seeing sounds to ME like catching up. How old is your child?


I have a huge head. Hats never fit me. I never thought of that until right now.

She's 15 months old.

She has been developing perfectly normally. She walks and is starting to talk a bit and is very interactive and active and in every respect seems very intelligent and normal. I guess that's a good sign, right?

But believe me, if the doc seems to think it's important to test for anything more wrong, I will. I read all about Lucas...


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## wednesday (Apr 26, 2004)

My son's head size/growth were off the charts as a baby, we were sent for an ultrasound when he was 9 months old. They scanned his brain through the fontanel. I nursed him through the whole thing to help him keep still. They were looking for any pockets of fluid or possibly tumors but found nothing. He's 4 now and perfectly fine, but like other PPs described, he has an adult-size head. It was tougher when he was a baby/toddler. Jackets/coats with attached hoods, and hooded sweatshirts, never worked on him. He's finally starting to grow into his head and it's not as much of a challenge anymore.

If your head size is also larger than typical, it sounds like this is probably normal for your daughter. Our ped was concerned partly because DH and I did NOT have larger heads, she measured ours to compare.


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## SundayCrepes (Feb 15, 2008)

My son had the exact same head growth. I know the fear. I also know it's probably fine.

My son started out with a head circ. at 50% for his gestational age, but 5% for all gestational ages. At 3.5 months it started getting bigger. By 12 months he was 90% or 95% (I can't remember which.)

Here's what it probably is for mine and yours. A study showed that children with that type of head growth tend to have higher IQs. My son is 28 months and very smart. It seems that's our story.

Now, here's the scary stuff, but don't get too concerned. Kids with hydrocephalus (water on the brain) would have rapid head growth. Just so I wouldn't have to worry, I insisted on an ultrasound when he was still little. If the top fontanel is still open so it's really easy to do an ultrasound. I'm not sure it could be done on a 9 month old.

Regarding autism. One study showed that 59% of children with autism and only 6% of typical kids have this head growth. However, that still means more kids with rapid head growth are typical than have autism. We saw a developmental pediatrician about this. She specializes in autism. She said that she's only seen 2 children with autism who did not show signs of autism before 1 year.

I watched my son like a hawk for any signs of autism. I did the ages and stages questionnaire (http://asq.uoregon.edu/) At 8 months I picked up a speech delay. Given the circumstances we had him evaluated by the local early intervention program and started speech therapy right away. As I said, he is 28 months, smart, and perfectly normal.

So, most likely you just have a smart kid. We chose to avoid vaccines until at least 3. If your little one's soft spot is still open I'd recommend calling the doctor and asking for an ultrasound now rather than waiting until the next appt. if there's any chance the soft spot will be closed.


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## *Aimee* (Jan 8, 2007)

My son has always had a big head. It was always in the 90th %. The doctor said he wasn't worried but wanted to watch it. Because of the consistent high measurements he never called for further testing. My new baby also has a large head. I think its just because they're going to be big men. My DH is 6'6 and 300 lbs so even though his head is large it doesn't look large on his body ya know?

I would def. do what the doctor wanted as far as testing and follow ups on this one though, but like the pp said its probably totally normal.


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## pianojazzgirl (Apr 6, 2006)

Hey mama... no time to read the other responses right now, but just wanted to say that this happened with my dd too. She had a head circ growth spurt and the dr asked us to take her in for an ultrasound to rule out hydrocephaly. As it turns out all was fine - she just has a big head like me and her dad, lol. According to her dr of all the times he's sent a kid for a U/S just to be on the safe side, he's never actually had one be a case of hydrocephaly. The chances are very very small that that's what's going on with your dd. But I KNOW first hand what it's like to worry about it, so I wanted to send tons of hugs your way...


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## Pandme (Jan 31, 2007)

While I agree it is something to watch I'm glad I never posted concerns about my kid's big head. Our pediatrician noticed my husband's huge head (and slight body) and noticed how our son was exactly the same way. The mom who lost her son to a brain tumor also had a child who was throwing up in the mornings as well without any other signs of a stomach problem. That's a classic symptom as well.

I'm sorry, but if I posted on here and people started talking about brain tumors and autism I would have left this board and gotten a prescription for anti-anxiety meds.


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## Bellejar (Oct 2, 2005)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *newsong* 
my dd is the same way. at 12 months she was 10th percentile for weight and 100th percentile for head size.









:

My daughter is finally caught up to her head size she is 4 1/2 now


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## Lola'smommy (Dec 20, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Pandme* 
While I agree it is something to watch I'm glad I never posted concerns about my kid's big head. Our pediatrician noticed my husband's huge head (and slight body) and noticed how our son was exactly the same way. The mom who lost her son to a brain tumor also had a child who was throwing up in the mornings as well without any other signs of a stomach problem. That's a classic symptom as well.

I'm sorry, but if I posted on here and people started talking about brain tumors and autism I would have left this board and gotten a prescription for anti-anxiety meds.

I agree!! I feel like she was looking for some comforting and got a lot more scary stories instead. You are keeping your eye on this, you are going to take your child back in a month to be remeasured and they will most likely tell you she is following her growth curve. I think it's pretty common and nothing to get worried about.


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