Acrania

Last revised by Jeremy Jones on 7 Apr 2023

Acrania is a rare lethal congenital anomaly characterized by an absence of the calvaria.

The estimated incidence is at ~1:1000 pregnancies 4

The condition is thought to result from abnormal migration of mesenchymal tissue, which normally covers the cerebral hemispheres. The calvarial bones are partially or entirely absent, with relative (albeit abnormal) preservation of cerebral hemisphere development. A thin membrane surrounds the cerebral hemispheres.

As the ossification of the fetal cranium begins and accelerates after nine weeks, antenatal ultrasound allows diagnosis from 11 weeks onwards. Looking specifically for frontal bone ossification in the axial and coronal planes is important.

Acrania is lethal and can progress to anencephaly through the acrania-anencephaly sequence 8.

Imaging differential considerations include conditions such as:

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