Abstract
Objective
Patients with normocephalic pansynostosis, who have a grossly normal head shape, are often overlooked early in life and present late with elevated intracranial pressure (ICP) requiring timely cranial vault expansion. This study evaluates the long-term clinical outcomes of patients with normocephalic pansynostosis.
Methods
We retrospectively reviewed patients with a clinical and radiographic diagnosis of primary pansynostosis who underwent vault reconstruction between 2000 and 2023. Clinical and treatment course after craniofacial interventions was followed in patients with normocephaly to assess outcomes.
Results
Thirty-five patients with primary pansynostosis were identified, of which eight (23.5%) had normocephaly and underwent initial vault expansion at a mean age of 5.0 ± 2.4 years. All eight patients (50.0% male) presented with symptoms of elevated ICP including headaches (50.0%), nausea and vomiting (50.0%), and developmental delay (62.5%) and/or signs of elevated ICP including papilledema (75.0%) and radiologic thumbprinting on head computed tomography scan (87.5%). Three of the four normocephalic patients who had over 7 years of postoperative follow-up developed subjective headaches, vision changes, or learning and behavioral issues in the long-term despite successful vault reconstruction.
Conclusions
Our longitudinal experience with this rare but insidious entity demonstrates the importance of timely intervention and frequent postoperative monitoring, which are critical to limiting long-term neurological sequelae. Multidisciplinary care by craniofacial surgery, neurosurgery, ophthalmology, and neuropsychology with follow-up into adolescence are recommended to assess for possible recurrence of elevated ICP secondary to cranio-cerebral disproportion.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Blount JP, Louis RG, Tubbs RS, Grant JH (2007) Pansynostosis: a review. Child’s Nerv Syst 23(10):1103–1109. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00381-007-0362-1
Chumas PD, Cinalli G, Arnaud E, Marchac D, Renier D (1997) Classification of previously unclassified cases of craniosynostosis. J Neurosurg 86(2):177–181. https://doi.org/10.3171/jns.1997.86.2.0177
Foo R, Whitaker LA, Bartlett SP (2010) Normocephalic pancraniosynostosis resulting in late presentation of elevated intracranial pressures. Plast Reconstr Surg 125(5):1493–1502. https://doi.org/10.1097/PRS.0b013e3181d62b48
Connolly JP, Gruss J, Seto ML et al (2004) Progressive postnatal craniosynostosis and increased intracranial pressure. Plast Reconstr Surg 113(5):1313–1323. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.PRS.0000111593.96440.30
Renier D, Sainte-Rose C, Marchac D, Hirsch J-F (1982) Intracranial pressure in craniostenosis. J Neurosurg 57(3):370–377. https://doi.org/10.3171/jns.1982.57.3.0370
Collmann H, Sörensen N, Krauß J (2005) Hydrocephalus in craniosynostosis: a review. Child’s Nerv Syst 21(10):902–912. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00381-004-1116-y
Reddy K, Hoffman H, Armstrong D (1990) Delayed and progressive multiple suture craniosynostosis. Neurosurgery. https://doi.org/10.1097/00006123-199003000-00011
Tan AP (2018) Primary normocephalic pancraniosynostosis detected incidentally after an accidental head injury: a case report and review of the literature. Child’s Nerv Syst 34(7):1427–1431. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00381-018-3768-z
Killion EA, McEwan TW, Muzaffar AR (2013) Normocephalic pancraniosynostosis. J Craniofac Surg 24(5):1665–1668. https://doi.org/10.1097/SCS.0b013e3182997d8f
Wong S, Nagengast ES, Miller J (2016) Anterior cranial vault distraction for the treatment of normocephalic pancraniosynostosis. J Craniofac Surg 27(3):e283–e288. https://doi.org/10.1097/SCS.0000000000002452
Czerwinski M, Monsivais S (2017) Normocephalic pancraniosynostosis. J Craniofac Surg 28(5):1291–1292. https://doi.org/10.1097/SCS.0000000000003638
Chen EH, Gilardino MS, Whitaker LA, Bartlett SP (2009) Evaluation of the safety of posterior cranial vault reconstruction. Plast Reconstr Surg 123(3):995–1001. https://doi.org/10.1097/PRS.0b013e318199f4b4
Steinbacher DM, Skirpan J, Puchała J, Bartlett SP (2011) Expansion of the posterior cranial vault using distraction osteogenesis. Plast Reconstr Surg 127(2):792–801. https://doi.org/10.1097/PRS.0b013e318200ab83
Marchac D (1978) Radical forehead remodeling for craniostenosis. Plast Reconstr Surg 61(6):823–835. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/662945
Whitaker LA, Bartlett SP, Schut L, Bruce D (1987) Craniosynostosis: an analysis of the timing, treatment, and complications in 164 consecutive patients. Plast Reconstr Surg 80(2):195–212. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3602170
Goldstein JA, Paliga JT, Wink JD, Low DW, Bartlett SP, Taylor JA (2013) A craniometric analysis of posterior cranial vault distraction osteogenesis. Plast Reconstr Surg 131(6):1367–1375. https://doi.org/10.1097/PRS.0b013e31828bd541
Derderian CA, Wink JD, McGrath JL, Collinsworth A, Bartlett SP, Taylor JA (2015) Volumetric changes in cranial vault expansion: comparison of fronto-orbital advancement and posterior cranial vault distraction osteogenesis. Plast Reconstr Surg 135(6):1665–1672. https://doi.org/10.1097/PRS.0000000000001294
Zapatero ZD, Kosyk MS, Kalmar CL et al (2022) How low should we go? Safety and craniometric impact of the low occipital osteotomy in posterior vault remodeling. Plast Reconstr Surg 150(5):1037e–1048e. https://doi.org/10.1097/PRS.0000000000009626
Humphries LS, Zapatero ZD, Vu GH et al (2022) Ten years of posterior cranial vault expansion by means of distraction osteogenesis: an update and critical evaluation. Plast Reconstr Surg 150(2):379–391. https://doi.org/10.1097/PRS.0000000000009336
Swanson JW, Samra F, Bauder A, Mitchell BT, Taylor JA, Bartlett SP (2016) An algorithm for managing syndromic craniosynostosis using posterior vault distraction osteogenesis. Plast Reconstr Surg 137(5):829e–841e. https://doi.org/10.1097/PRS.0000000000002127
van der Meulen J, van der Vlugt J, Okkerse J, Hofman B (2008) Early beaten-copper pattern: its long-term effect on intelligence quotients in 95 children with craniosynostosis. J Neurosurg Pediatr 1(1):25–30. https://doi.org/10.3171/PED-08/01/025
Arnaud E, Renier D, Marchac D (1995) Prognosis for mental function in scaphocephaly. J Neurosurg 83(3):476–479. https://doi.org/10.3171/jns.1995.83.3.0476
Gault DT, Renier D, Marchac D, Jones BM (1992) Intracranial pressure and intracranial volume in children with craniosynostosis. Plast Reconstr Surg 90(3):377–381. https://doi.org/10.1097/00006534-199209000-00003
Tamburrini G, Caldarelli M, Massimi L, Santini P, Di Rocco C (2005) Intracranial pressure monitoring in children with single suture and complex craniosynostosis: a review. Child’s Nerv Syst 21(10):913–921. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00381-004-1117-x
Pijpers M, Poels PJP, Vaandrager JM et al (2004) Undiagnosed obstructive sleep apnea syndrome in children with syndromal craniofacial synostosis. J Craniofac Surg 15(4):670–674. https://doi.org/10.1097/00001665-200407000-00026
Baron ME, Dvoracek LA, Bykowski MR, Goldstein JA, Losee JE (2021) Undiagnosed normocephalic pancraniosynostosis presenting as bilateral abducens nerve palsy. J Craniofac Surg 32(1):270–272. https://doi.org/10.1097/SCS.0000000000007018
Bonfield CM, Tamber MS, Losee JE (2014) Blindness from late presenting undiagnosed pancraniosynostosis mimicking pseudotumor cerebri. J Child Neurol 29(8):NP24–NP27. https://doi.org/10.1177/0883073813495307
Persing JA (2008) MOC-PS(SM) CME article: management considerations in the treatment of craniosynostosis. Plast Reconstr Surg 121(Supplement):1–11. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.prs.0000305929.40363.bf
Kalmar CL, Lang S-S, Heuer GG et al (2022) Neurocognitive outcomes of children with non-syndromic single-suture craniosynostosis. Child’s Nerv Syst 38(5):893–901. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00381-022-05448-0
Kalmar CL, Humphries LS, McGeehan B et al (2022) Elevated intracranial pressure in patients with craniosynostosis by optical coherence tomography. Plast Reconstr Surg 149(3):677–690. https://doi.org/10.1097/PRS.0000000000008821
Xu W, Gerety P, Aleman T, Swanson J, Taylor J (2016) Noninvasive methods of detecting increased intracranial pressure. Child’s Nerv Syst 32(8):1371–1386. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00381-016-3143-x
Nazir S, O’Brien M, Qureshi NH, Slape L, Green TJ, Phillips PH (2009) Sensitivity of papilledema as a sign of shunt failure in children. J Am Assoc Pediatr Ophthalmol Strabismus 13(1):63–66. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaapos.2008.08.003
Aylward SC, Waslo CS, Au JN, Tanne E (2016) Manifestations of pediatric intracranial hypertension from the Intracranial Hypertension Registry. Pediatr Neurol 61:76–82. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pediatrneurol.2016.04.007
Swanson JW, Aleman TS, Xu W et al (2017) Evaluation of optical coherence tomography to detect elevated intracranial pressure in children. JAMA Ophthalmol 135(4):320. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamaophthalmol.2017.0025
Pellicer E, Siebold BS, Birgfeld CB, Gallagher ER (2018) Evaluating trends in headache and revision surgery following cranial vault remodeling for craniosynostosis. Plast Reconstr Surg 141(3):725–734. https://doi.org/10.1097/PRS.0000000000004180
Miller MT, Pasquale M, Kurek S et al (2004) Initial head computed tomographic scan characteristics have a linear relationship with initial intracranial pressure after trauma. J Trauma Inj Infect Crit Care 56(5):967–973. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.TA.0000123699.16465.8B
Kouvarellis AJ, Rohlwink UK, Sood V, Van Breda D, Gowen MJ, Figaji AA (2011) The relationship between basal cisterns on CT and time-linked intracranial pressure in paediatric head injury. Child’s Nerv Syst 27(7):1139–1144. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00381-011-1464-3
Hormozi AK, Kasbi AA, Hormozi HK, Davai NR (2022) Assessing long-term neurodevelopment among children with non-syndromic single suture craniosynostosis. World J Plast Surg 11(2):57–61. https://doi.org/10.52547/wjps.11.2.57
Long AS, Hauc SC, Almeida MN et al (2023) Morphologic severity and age at surgery are associated with school age neurocognitive outcomes in metopic craniosynostosis. Plast Reconstr Surg. https://doi.org/10.1097/PRS.0000000000010999
Junn AH, Long AS, Hauc SC et al (2023) Long-term neurocognitive outcomes in 204 single-suture craniosynostosis patients. Child’s Nerv Syst 39(7):1921–1928. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00381-023-05908-1
Zapatero ZD, Kalmar CL, Kosyk MS et al (2021) Craniometric and volumetric analysis of posterior vault distraction osteogenesis: 10 year update. J Craniofac Surg 32(7):2379–2383. https://doi.org/10.1097/SCS.0000000000007838
Funding
No funding was received to assist with the preparation of this manuscript.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
M.W. participated in conception and design of the project, data analysis, interpretation of data, drafting of the manuscript, critical revision of the manuscript, and final approval of the version to be published. B.B.M., N.R., D.J.R., J.J.N., J.A.T., and J.W.S. participated in interpretation of data and critical revision of the manuscript. S.P.B. and S.S.L. participated in conception and design of the project, interpretation of data, critical revision of the manuscript, and final approval of the version to be published.
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Competing interests
The authors declare no competing interests.
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Supplementary Information
Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.
Rights and permissions
Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
About this article
Cite this article
Wu, M., Massenburg, B.B., Reddy, N. et al. Long-term sequelae of normocephalic pansynostosis: a rare but insidious entity. Childs Nerv Syst (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00381-024-06379-8
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00381-024-06379-8