Craniosynostosis (sometimes called craniostenosis) is a pediatric disorder that produces an abnormally shaped head and face by fusing the sutures of the skull too early in childhood. Sutures are the seams where the bones in the skull are joined, and allow for expansion as the brain doubles in size between six months and two years of age. Normally, the sutures fuse by 6-8 years of age as the brain ceases to expand. The skulls of patients with craniosynostosis will not allow for this natural expansion, and may require surgery to provide ample space for a growing brain and improve the child's appearance.
