What is anencephaly?

Also known as: open skull.

Anencephaly is a birth defect that affects the developing brain and skull bones of newborn babies. This results in only a very small part of the brain developing and only parts of the baby’s bony skull to be present.

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Reviewed by: Jack Wolfsdorf, MD, FAAP

This page was last updated on: 1/29/2019 3:21:13 PM