Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 29, 2025
A Detailed Protocol for Physiological Parameters Acquisition and Analysis in Neurosurgical Critical Patients
Published on: October 17, 2017
Intracranial pressure, brain morphology and cognitive outcome in children with sagittal craniosynostosis
Amalie E Thiele-Nygaard1, Jon Foss-Skiftesvik2, Marianne Juhler1
1Department of Neurosurgery, Copenhagen University Hospital Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Insights
Sagittal craniosynostosis patients show altered brain morphology, not a direct link to raised intracranial pressure (ICP), impacting neurocognition. Further research is needed to confirm the role of these morphological changes in cognitive deficits.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Neurosurgery
- Developmental Neuroscience
- Craniofacial Surgery
Background:
- Patients with sagittal craniosynostosis face higher risks of elevated intracranial pressure (ICP) and neurocognitive impairments.
- These impairments can manifest as attention deficits, planning difficulties, speech problems, and learning disabilities.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the existing literature for a correlation between elevated ICP and adverse cognitive outcomes in sagittal craniosynostosis.
- To investigate if brain morphology changes explain the risk of neurocognitive deficiencies in these patients.
Main Methods:
- A systematic literature review was conducted using PubMed.
- 190 publications were initially reviewed, with four ultimately included for ICP and cognitive outcome analysis.
- 11 publications were included for brain morphology analysis.
Main Results:
- No significant association was found between elevated ICP and negative global cognitive outcomes in patients with sagittal craniosynostosis.
- The review identified clear evidence of morphologic brain changes in multiple areas in patients with sagittal craniosynostosis.
- These altered brain areas are related to neurocognition and language.
Conclusions:
- Current literature does not support a link between increased ICP and poor cognitive outcomes in sagittal craniosynostosis.
- Altered brain morphology in key neurocognitive and language areas is evident in this patient group.
- Morphological changes may contribute to neurocognitive deficiencies, but further investigation is required to establish a definitive link.
Background:
Patients with sagittal craniosynostosis are at increased risk of developing raised intracranial pressure (ICP) and neurocognitive deficiencies such as reduced attention, planning, speech, behavioural and learning disabilities.
Aim:
To determine if the existing literature supports a correlation between elevated ICP and negative cognitive outcome in patients with sagittal craniosynostosis. Secondly, to investigate if the risk of developing neurocognitive deficiencies can be explained by changes in brain morphology in this patient category.
Methods:
Systematic literature review in PubMed.
Results:
A total of 190 publications were reviewed to determine a possible correlation between raised ICP and cognitive outcome, of which four were included in the study. No significant association was found. Forty-four publications on brain morphology in sagittal craniosynostosis were identified, of which 11 were included in the review. Clear evidence of morphologic changes in multiple areas of the brains of sagittal craniosynostosis patients was found in the literature.
Conclusion:
The existing literature does not support an association between increased ICP and negative global cognitive outcome measures in patients with sagittal craniosynostosis. Brain morphology is altered in areas related to neurocognition and language in the same patient group. These changes might play a role in the development of neurocognitive deficiencies, though no definitive link is yet established, and further investigation is warranted.
Related Concept Videos
01:22Sutures of the Skull
Sutures are immobile joints between adjacent bones of the skull. The narrow gap between the bones is filled with dense, fibrous connective tissue that unites the bones. The long sutures located between the skull bones are not straight but instead follow irregular, tightly twisting paths. These twisting lines tightly...
01:14Cranial Bones: Superior and Posterior View
The frontal bone is the single bone that forms the forehead. At its anterior midline, between the eyebrows, there is a slight depression called the glabella. The frontal bone also forms the supraorbital margin of the orbit. Near the middle of this margin is the supraorbital foramen, the opening that provides passage for a sensory nerve to the forehead. The frontal bone is thickened just above each supraorbital margin,...