Hi there,

My son is 10 months old and was born with a coarctation of the aorta, VSD, SAD, hypospadias and syndactyly of toes 2-3 on left foot. The geneticists are still looking for a particular 'syndrome' that he has, but all tests have come back normal so far. I know microcephaly is also a symptom of many syndromes.
In terms of his growth, his weight is on the 5th, his length is on the 3rd percentile, and head circumference just below the 3rd. Is this considered microcephaly? If not, how much out of proportion would the head have to be compared to length to be considered microcephaly?
Thankyou

Anne

Posted on behalf of Dr. Olson:

Hi,

It sounds like he has what we call intra-uterine growth retardation, a
condition where everything, including head, is not growing well, but is
proportional. Most definitions of microcephaly I have read need the
head to be more than 2 standard deviations under the mean size. I would
consider it more serious if the head is markedly smaller than the rest
of the measurements.

Good luck, Dr. Olson