Perspectives on Craniosynostosis

Perspectives on craniosynostosis are discussed under the following headings: sutural biology (anatomic and genetic categories of synostosis; sutures, suture systems, and types of craniosynostosis; well-known syndromes (Muenke syndrome and Pfeiffer syndrome); and unusual syndromes (thanatophoric dysplasia, Beare-Stevenson cutis gyrata syndrome, Crouzonodermoskeletal syndrome, Carpenter syndrome, Elejalde syndrome, hypomandibular faciocranial syndrome, and craniorhiny). Five of these syndromes are caused by fibroblast growth factor receptor (FGFR) mutations; one is caused by ras-like in rat brain 23 (RAB23) mutations; and three have Mendelian patterns of inheritance, but the molecular basis remains unknown to date.