What's Wrong with this Picture

This post is an attempt to explain to my family and friends who may not be that familiar with metopic cranio exactly what is wrong with Jesse and why I am pushing so hard for him to have another surgery.

This little guy is a beautiful baby. And the last thing I want to do is point out his imperfections, because to me he is perfect in every way. But with cranio, that's how we know that something is wrong and it needs to be fixed. The last thing I ever wanted is for Jesse to go through surgery in the first place, much less have to do it twice.

This picture is just 3 days before Jesse's surgery for metopic cranio.

Here's the same photo with captions that explain some of the characteristics of metopic cranio.

 

Here is a photo of the top of Jesse's head before surgery.

 

And his pre-surgery CT scan.

 

You can clearly see in the top view and in the CT scan how his head had taken on a triangular shape due to the metopic suture closing before birth. Since the only way his brain can grow is to the back, it forces the back of the head to become wider.

When Jesse had surgery, there were a few things that should have been fixed. The first was to release the metopic suture. Secondly, flatten and broaden the forehead to allow room for the brain to grow. And finally, the brow bone should have been reconstructed as it never formed due to the closure of the metopic suture.

Here is a post-op photo of the top of Jesse's head.

 

Sometimes the early closure of the metopic suture causes a more egg-shaped head than a triangular shaped head as Jesse had before surgery. 

You can see in the post-op photo that he still has a somewhat triangular shape, but it also is egg-shaped now as well. The brow bone was not reconstructed. If it was, you surely cannot tell from the photo as his brow bone is still non-existent. His eyes, although they had been somewhat farther apart after surgery, have started moving in closer together again.

I'm only pointing out the physical characteristics because this is the only way that I know that something is wrong. The real issue is that the forehead is still too narrow to allow for proper growth of the brain. His head is still wide in the back because that is still the only way the brain has to go. There is also concern that there could be decreased blood flow to the sides of the frontal lobe due to the narrow forehead. 

I do not want Jesse to have another surgery. Jesse needs to have another surgery. And it just makes me sick to even think about him going through all that again. But it has to be done in order to give him the best possible chance in life.