Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 3, 2026

Intravital Longitudinal Imaging of Vascular Dynamics in the Calvarial Bone Marrow
Published on: April 11, 2025
Triphasic Evolution of Spontaneous Calvarial Neo-Ossification After Decompressive Craniectomy: A 15-Year Serial
Kaiyan Song1, Min Wei, Hengzhu Zhang
1Department of Neurosurgery, Northern Jiangsu People's Hospital Affiliated to Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, Jiangsu Province, China.
Abstract:
Spontaneous cranial bone regeneration after decompressive craniectomy (DC) is rare in adults and has uniformly been described as a unidirectional, progressive process. The authors report the first case of a triphasic, nonlinear evolution-formation, resorption, and reactivation-of spontaneous calvarial neo-ossification in an adult. A 24-year-old man underwent bilateral DC for severe traumatic brain injury; the native dura was preserved almost intact on the left side, whereas the right side underwent extensive durotomy with expansile duraplasty. Serial computed tomography at 8 time points over 15 years revealed, on the left, patchy neo-ossification by day 107 that peaked around day 133, resorbed to a nadir at 9 months, reactivated at 23 months, and formed a continuous bony plate bridging the native bone margin by 15 years. The right side showed only 2 punctate bone islands at 15 years. Spontaneous neo-ossification in adults may be nonlinearly and reversibly regulated by the local biomechanical microenvironment, and the integrity of the native dura seems to be a key prerequisite for its initiation. These findings have implications for the timing of cranioplasty, choice of implant material, and duration of imaging follow-up.
Related Concept Videos
Sutures 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...
Overview of the Skull
The cranial vault surrounds and protects the brain and houses the middle and inner ear structures. This cavity is bounded superiorly by the rounded top of the skull, which...
Cranial Bones: Lateral View
The temporal bone forms the lower lateral side of the skull. The temporal bone is subdivided into several regions. The flattened upper portion is the squamous portion of the temporal bone. Below this area and projecting anteriorly is the zygomatic process of the temporal bone, which forms the posterior portion of the zygomatic arch. Posteriorly is the mastoid portion of the temporal bone. Projecting...
Imaging Studies III: Computed Tomography
Cranial 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,...
Increased Intracranial Pressure l: Introduction
