Studies on the Rachitis of Newborns (Part 7) So-called Congenital Craniotabes

The present study was undertaken with the hope of throwing more light on a condition found in newborn infants and on the problem of the rachitis of newborn. The most frequent location of so-called congenital craniotabes is the regions along the course of the sagittal suture. It occurs in about 25,5 per cent of all full-term newborn infants. There is a slight seasonal variation in its frequency, with winter as the most favourable season for its occurence. It shows a predilection for infants of the lower birth weight, smaller head circumference, larger fontanel, separated sutures with soft edges, enlarged costochondral junctions and younger primipara. The phosphorus content in the blood serum of newborn infants with the craniotabes and their mothers is slightly lower that of newborn infants without the craniotabes and their mothers. It is suggested that so-called congenital craniotabes should be considered not as a physiologic, but a pathologic manifestation, and as being influenced by such factors, as the maternal nutrition and health during pregnancy.