Small head

JustGoWithIt

LO had his 4mo appt this morning. Our nurse always gives us a little paper with his weight/height/head stats & percentiles on it. Today he's 90% for length & 50-75% for weight.

At his 2mo appt his head circumference was in the 25th percentile. Today the sheet says 50-75%. I asked the doc about it because the nurse measured twice this morning. She said he is falling off his growth curve in that measurement so they just want to keep an eye on it. It did grow a little bit since the last appt, so it's not like it stopped growing.

If his % went up from last time, how is he falling off the curve? I'm also really trying hard not to ask Sir Google what a slow head growth rate might mean. 

Anyone else have this issue? 

JustGoWithIt

41cm

argonne

DD has the same head circumference (16.1") and is at 58%tile.  I don't know what your nurse meant by falling off his curve.  They could be concerned because there is a sudden difference in curves (25th-50th+).  I know they like to see them follow a curve and get concerned over any big movement up or down off of that curve.

jnnfrrose6

JustGoWithIt said:

LO had his 4mo appt this morning. Our nurse always gives us a little paper with his weight/height/head stats & percentiles on it. Today he's 90% for length & 50-75% for weight.

At his 2mo appt his head circumference was in the 25th percentile. Today the sheet says 50-75%. I asked the doc about it because the nurse measured twice this morning. She said he is falling off his growth curve in that measurement so they just want to keep an eye on it. It did grow a little bit since the last appt, so it's not like it stopped growing.

If his % went up from last time, how is he falling off the curve? I'm also really trying hard not to ask Sir Google what a slow head growth rate might mean. 

Anyone else have this issue? 

Falling off the curve doesn't necessarily mean not getting big enough, it could also mean getting too big.  I don't have any personal experience, but it sounds like the jump from 25% to 50-75% is something they want to keep an eye on and make sure there isn't some underlying cause for his head to be growing more rapidly than his curve would indicate.

EllaSmella

I had this happen to me. At birth, DDs head was in the 20th percentile. At her 2 month appointment, it was in the 60th percentile. They were not really concerned because her weight went from the 5th to the 70th as well, so it was proportionate growth, but anytime their head jumps significantly in size, they want to watch it to make sure there are no issues with their brain, swelling or anything like that. If you have concerns call the back and ask to speak with a nurse - they will be able to give you more information that's probably more accurate than you're going to get here.

missyrissy

My doc said p would just have a dainty head

JustGoWithIt

Thanks ladies. Glad to know he has same/similar measurement as others of the same age. I trust the doc would have elaborated more when I asked if it was a bigger issue, but of course that didn't stop me from a moment of worry. Hopefully things will just continue as normal when we go back at 6mo