Question
In the morning, I felt a soft hematoma on my child’s head, starting from above the right ear to the left of the anterior fontanelle, covering an area about 5 cm wide. It is about the size of half an adult’s palm.
Answer
Infant scalp hematoma primarily occurs during difficult labor, vacuum extraction, or forceps delivery, and sometimes even during normal delivery. It is caused by bleeding from the rupture of subdural blood vessels and the retention of blood in regional areas. It mainly occurs in one or two parietal bones. The hematoma is above the skin, with clear boundaries, varying in size, and does not exceed the sutures of the skull. It becomes gradually apparent 2-3 days after birth, with fluctuating pressure, and can gradually absorb and disappear. It usually lasts for several weeks to several months. Treatment is not required unless there is an infection.