Question

What are fontanels?

Answer 1

Fontanels:

1. Fontanels are two large soft patches on the top of a baby's head that are present at birth.
2. These soft patches are places between the bones of the skull where the construction of the bones hasn't finished.
3. This permits the skull to be shaped while the baby is still in the womb.
4. The newly created embryo's skeleton is made up of a fibrous membrane and cartilage components, which are later replaced by bones during the ossification process.
5. These can be found in the space between the skull bones.
6. Its functions include:
   1. Allows for accelerated brain development during childhood.
   2. It allows the skull of the fetus to compress as it goes down the birth canal.
   3. It serves as a landmark to withdraw blood from the superior sagittal sinus and assists in establishing the fetal position before the child's birth.