Neural tube defect involving absence of much of the brain, skull and scalp
Medical condition
Anencephaly
Illustration of an anencephalic fetus
Specialty
Medical genetics; pediatrics
Symptoms
Absence of the cerebrum and cerebellum
Risk factors
Folic acid deficiency
Prevention
Mother taking enough folic acid
Prognosis
Death typically occurs within hours to days after birth.
Frequency
1 in 4600 in the U.S.
Anencephaly is the absence of a major portion of the brain, skull, and scalp that occurs during embryonic development.[1] It is a cephalic disorder that results from a neural tube defect that occurs when the rostral (head) end of the neural tube fails to close, usually between the 23rd and 26th day following conception.[2] Strictly speaking, the Greek term translates as "without a brain" (or totally lacking the inside part of the head), but it is accepted that children born with this disorder usually only lack a telencephalon,[3] the largest part of the brain consisting mainly of the cerebral hemispheres, including the neocortex, which is responsible for cognition. The remaining structure is usually covered only by a thin layer of membrane—skin, bone, meninges, etc., are all lacking.[4] With very few exceptions,[5] infants with this disorder do not survive longer than a few hours or days after birth.
^"Cephalic disorders – Overview, Anencephaly, Colpocephaly – neurologychannel". September 3, 2015. Archived from the original on May 9, 2008. Retrieved September 19, 2016.
^O'Rahilly, M; Muller, F (1992). Human Embryology & Teratology. New York: Wiley-Liss, Inc. p. 253. ISBN 978-0471382256.
^Chervenak, F.A.; Kurjak, A.; Comstock, C.H. (1995). Ultrasound and the Fetal Brain: Progress in Obstetric and Gynecological Sonography Series (1st publ ed.). New York: Parthenon Pub. Group. p. 102. ISBN 978-1850706120.
^"Anencephaly Information Page: National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)". Archived from the original on 2 December 2016. Retrieved 2016-12-02.
^"Baby Without A Brain, Nickolas Coke, Update". Archived from the original on 2012-09-14.
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from other developmental problems such as anencephaly. Anencephaly is a fatal condition. Infants with anencephaly are stillborn in about 75 percent of cases...
generally considered incompatible with life include Potter's syndrome and anencephaly. Where disorders incompatible with life are found before birth, patients...
conditions. neurological abnormalities such as anencephaly, which impair the swallowing reflex. Anencephaly is failure of closure of the rostral neuropore...
include neural tube defects such as spina bifida, encephalocele, and anencephaly. Other congenital anomalies of the nervous system include the Arnold–Chiari...
skull. This condition is usually found in embryos as an early stage of anencephaly. As an exencephalic pregnancy progresses, the neural tissue gradually...
vote to legalize abortion in cases of fetuses with anencephaly, saying that children with anencephaly were biologically alive but that they were not a person...
kilometer (0.62 mi) of the hypocenter, an increase in microencephaly and anencephaly was observed upon birth, with the incidence of these two particular malformations...
[citation needed] While anencephaly experiences a partial to total lack of the neurocranium, iniencephaly does not. In anencephaly, the retroflexed head...
Anencephaly is a condition in which the baby develops with an open skull in some region. Rachischisis can develop in conjunction with anencephaly, increasing...
and caudal (inferior) neuropore closure results in conditions called anencephaly and spina bifida, respectively. Additionally, failure of the neural tube...
Factors that predispose to face presentation are prematurity, macrosomia, anencephaly and other malformations, cephalopelvic disproportion, and polyhydramnios...
neural tube defect related to but distinct from other types such as anencephaly and encephalocele. Most cases of spina bifida can be prevented if the...
amniotic fluid enters the brain, leading to eventual brain degeneration and anencephaly. Craniorachischisis is on the extreme end of the dysraphism spectrum...
with other severe malformations of the central nervous system, like anencephaly, holoprosencephaly, and microencephaly. The condition was first reported...
venlafaxine use during pregnancy and several birth defects including anencephaly, cleft palate, septal heart defects and coarctation of the aorta. Prospective...
occurs in combination with other congenital disorders, particularly anencephaly, neural tube defect and cardiac malformations. When present, the brain...
by the Supreme Federal Court, abortion is also permitted in case of anencephaly, and it may also be authorized by court order in other fatal cases of...
that it is the mummy of a Native American infant that was born with anencephaly, but due to its small size and unusual physical features, it has been...
terminalis to close properly at this stage of development will result in anencephaly or meroencephaly. Mesal aspect of a brain sectioned in the median sagittal...
condition anencephaly as the basis of the case, not the recurring subsidiary symptoms of respiratory distress. As the irreversibility of anencephaly is widely...
closure of the neuropores can result in neural tube defects such as anencephaly or spina bifida. The dorsal part of the neural tube contains the alar...
indicates a greater risk for anencephaly and open spina bifida. This screening is 80% and 90% sensitive for spina bifida and anencephaly, respectively.[citation...
Low folate levels are correlated with neural tube defects, such as anencephaly and spina bifida. UV rays can strip away folate, which is important to...
birth defects, particularly neural tube defects such as spina bifida and anencephaly. Vitamin B12 Cobalamins Vitamin B12 deficiency results in a macrocytic...
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