Activity 6: Examining the Fetal Skull
1. Are the same skull bones seen in the adult also found in the fetal skull?
2. What is particular about the frontal bone in fetal and adult skulls.
1. Yes.
2. The frontal bone in fetal skulls is bipartite whereas the adult skull consists of a single bone.
1. How does the size of the fetal face compare to its cranium?
2. How big are the maxilla and mandible?
1. Face is a lot smaller than cranium.
2. Maxilla and mandible are very tiny.
How does this compare to the adult skull?
In adult skull, cranium is proportionately smaller and facial skeleton is proportionally longer.
What is the most obvious difference between fetal and adult skeletons, specifically concerning the skull?
Huge size of the fetal skull relative to the rest of the skeleton.
Describe the bones at birth.
They are incompletely formed.
The incomplete skull bones at birth are connected by what?
Fontanelles
What are fontanelles?
Fibrous membranes.
Fontanelles allow the fetal skull to be ____ during birth and allows for ____ in the fetus and infant?
1. Allow fetal skull to be compressed slightly during birth
2. Allow for brain growth in the fetus and infant
When do the fontanelles completely ossify?
When the child is 1.5 to 2 years old.
Some of the cranial bones have conical protrusions. What are these?
Ossification centers.
In a fetal skull, what is peculiar about the frontal bone?
It is still bipartite.
In a fetal skull, what is peculiar about the temporal bone?
It is incompletely ossified.
Identify the missing features.
Identify the missing features.
Identify the missing features.
Identify the missing features.