Fontanelle Closure Timeline
The fontanelle is usually closed by the time the baby.
Fontanelle closure timeline. The a nterior fontanelle takes the longest time after birth to close. In chimpanzees the anterior fontanelle is fully closed by 3 months of age. At birth an infant has six fontanels.
At two months of age the posterior fontanelle closes followed by anterior fontanelle closure at approximately two years. Two fontanelles usually are present on a newborn s skull. In humans all fontanelles are generally fused by the fifth year of life with 38 of fontanelles closed by the end of the first year and 96 of the fontanelles closed by the second year.
The anterolateral and posterolateral fontanelles close at three months and one year respectively. It may already be closed at birth. Fontanelle and suture closure occurs in a specific pattern table 1 and table 2.
Joints made of strong fibrous tissue cranial sutures hold the bones of your baby s skull together. The anterior fontanel is the largest and most important for. The largest fontanel is at the front anterior.
Fontanelles allow for rapid stretching and deformation of the neurocranium as the brain expands faster than the surrounding bone can grow. It will take between 12 to 18 months for the sutures to solidify here. The sutures remain flexible during infancy allowing the skull to expand as the brain grows.
In contrast apes fuse the fontanelles soon after birth. The sutures meet at the fontanels the soft spots on your baby s head.