Contribution of skull roentgenograms to pediatric diagnoses

The place of roentgenograms of the skull has changed substantially over the last tow decades. Skull roentgenograms remain valuable for studying deformities involving all or part of the cranial vault, particularly plagiocephaly and craniosynostosis. They provide little information on the contents of the skull, which can be investigated noninvasively using computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, and, in infants, ultrasonography. The 1990 consensus panel concluded that patients with head injury should be evaluated mainly on the basis of clinical criteria and that the contribution of roentgenograms is minimal in this setting. In some central nervous system disorders, roentgenograms of the skull can be of use secondarily to look for calcifications or osteolysis. (authors). 10 refs., 1 figs., 1 tab