Florence - metopic diagnosis

We had noticed that Florence had sort of "pinched" temples, but my sister (for whom she is named, actually) also had this characteristic, so we didn't think anything of it. It was at a Dr. visit for my other daughter (strep, bummer) that the Doctor asked if we had had Florence's head evaluated. At first I thought she was talking about the cradle cap, but she clarified it was the shape of her head and the "beak" that was forming down the middle of her forehead. The two pediatricians we saw didn't think it looked that serious, but they did want that confirmed by a neurosurgeon. I did a little research on the internet, but resolved not to worry until someone told me to. I went to the see the neurosurgeon on March 5, expecting to hear that we would monitor her head shape, but that we wouldn't do anything.

Unfortunately, he walked in and immediately knew that he wanted to recommend surgery. He explained the procedure to me, but told me it was still sort of optional. He wanted to get a CT scan to confirm there was no brain involvement and wanted me to meet with a plastic surgeon as well. He warned me about some of what I would find on the internet, explaining that the endoscopic procedure was available for metopic babies, but that he had found that the old-fashioned version had better results with a lower likelihood of another surgery.

He wanted me to get the CT and come back with my husband to discuss any questions. We did that and met with the Plastic Surgeon as well, both at Phoenix Children's Hospital. Once they looked at her scan, they noticed that the front sutures were fused together and were not allowing the brain to grow correctly in the front. It was also forcing the brain to grow backwards and they felt the back sutures were farther apart than normal. We decided that surgery was no longer optional. More research, more web searching...the surgery was scheduled for April 9. It is tough to find any pictures that show her ridge on her forehead, but it was there from the beginning. It's easy to see from the top how she had something of an eggshaped head.