Ventriculomegaly

How can ventriculomegaly affect my child?

Ventriculomegaly

The ventricular system contains sac-like pockets that are filled with cerebrospinal fluid. When the ventricular system of the brain is enlarged, it is known as ventriculomegaly. The lateral ventricles of the brain are less than 10 mm wide in a healthy fetus. However, a fetus that suffers from ventriculomegaly has lateral ventricles measuring 10-15 mm wide. Sometimes they are even larger, in which the case is severe. Luckily, ventriculomegaly is not linked to other health conditions in most cases. Severe cases of ventriculomegaly can result in hydrocephalus, also known as water on the brain. In hydrocephalus cases, the cerebrospinal fluid builds up and puts pressure on the brain.

There are three major causes of ventriculomegaly. Improper brain development, destroyed brain tissue and insufficient absorption of cerebrospinal fluid are all factors that can make the ventricles in the brain larger. Sometimes chromosomal problems can cause ventriculomegaly.

Ventriculomegaly affects approximately 1 out of 1,000 live births and is normally nothing that the mother has done. The condition can be diagnosed before or after birth. Ventriculomegaly can be detected on ultrasound by the second trimester. An MRI can also be helpful in diagnosing the condition. A chromosomal analysis can be used to test for chromosomal problems that can cause the condition.

The only time that ventriculomegaly needs to be treated is when there is water on the brain. Even if there is no water on the brain, regular exams should be done to monitor the condition. Once the baby has been born, doctors will do exams and measure the head circumference to make sure the baby is healthy. Usually, ventriculomegaly will resolve on its own and there are no neurological or developmental problems. As long as there are no other health conditions or chromosomal abnormalities present, the long-term prognosis for a child born with mild to moderate ventriculomegaly is great.

Comments: Ventriculomegaly

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susan29 - 72 days ago.
Jenna I am one of the mother's who's baby's enlarged ventricle went down to normal on its own... at 20 weeks I was told that one of her ventricles was borderline high at 10mm - luckily I have an excellent doctor that is educated about ventriculomegaly and he told me not to worry that a lot of times these things resolve on their own.. ofcourse I still worried.. at that time I went out and bought the Enfamil Expecta DHA supplement.. a lot of the mommies on this board did the same.. I ofcourse don't know if that helped but at my 24week ultrasound it had resolved itself! it was down to 7mm! I gave birth to my baby girl exactly 2 weeks ago and she is absolutely perfect! As a matter of fact she rolled over from her back to her belly at 4 days!! Please take the time to make an informed decision.. It doesn't sound like the Dr.'s you are dealing with know much about ventriculomegaly given that they are telling you that 10-11 mm is severe - please also take the time to read all of the wonderful positive stories on this board.. this board helped me more than words can say!

Havingfaith - 72 days ago.
Jenna please dont make that decision yet please!!! i was told at my scan that my babys vents were 10mm which is boarderline not sever!!! i was told he had short imbs, fluid under his skin, no septum pellucidium, enlarged cerrebellum, and ACC...basically told me my baby would be severly disabled and if anything have downs syndrome...before we made any decision an MRI scan was needed!!! the results we had made us realise that the DOCS are only human and make mistakes...my baby hasnt fluid under his skin, his cerebellum is fine, he HAS his septum pellucidium and he also has his corpus callosum! but he still has ventriculomegaly now 13-14mm, an amni test was done and he hasnt any chromosome issues! Please hae scans/tests before making any decision , my thoughts are with you hun xXx

nurse - 73 days ago.
Jenna I understand your concern but please don't believe you should terminate for that measurement. I was told 10 was high normal and some even consider 11-12 still high normal. I believe every doc has their own measurement. However, 17 weeks is still pretty early and anything can progress so be cautious. I'm in your same boat right now. At 18 to 19 weeks I was high normal and by 20 weeks it had moved into moderate and now we are considered severe however the neurosurg says he believes we are still in the moderate range. Of course, I'm a wreck and we have one more test on Tuesday (fetal ECHO) to take a good look at the heart before we make any life changing decisions. Good luck with everything.

BabygirlOnTheWay - 73 days ago.
jenna ivy louise berry---first off making such a big decision has got to be hard & it's going to be your decision... don't let anyone influence that. I pray that your heart finds the answer it's seeking. Secondly, 10mm is considered borderline, NOT severe! They're crazy to tell you that. Many things cause VM. From unknown reasons, that sometimes resolve themselves, like many babies on this forum... to chromosomal abnormalities, infections, intracranial abnormalities (like my case of ACC)... so they should offer you testing for these things before you have to make any decisions. I wasn't diagnosed until 28 wks, and I've refused any testing, but only because my little one is coming regardless... when she's born we will evaluate her, and God willing things will be ok. My thoughts and prayers are with you... --Liz

jenna ivy louise berry - 73 days ago.
i need positive attitude please help im 17 weeks pregnant my baby has ventriculomegaly they messures 9.2 and 10.3 im told its servere and should opt for termination but i cant bring myself to do this and now ive read all these stories im more determind to keep with it its positive for me but just want some help on if im doing the right thing

BabygirlOnTheWay - 73 days ago.
Hello to everyone again! Just an update... we went for our follow up with our specialist yesterday (the first opinion we had). Baby Gabriela is growing appropriately, right on target, weighing 4 lbs, and unfortunately is still breeched (we're almost 33 weeks). Her ventricles really haven't changed much, still around 17mm (and he says it's bilateral, other dr said only the rt side... agghh!) Dr. still is convinced he sees ACC on ultrasound, says not much of it is there. Her 3rd ventricle is also dilated, don't really know the significance behind that. Did I mention he's never had to diagnose ACC before? He's only studied it... he's been a perinatologist for around 20 years, I think. Our next follow up is in 5 weeks... Why he would wait so long, I have no idea. I'll be 37 weeks... still trying to stay positive, but I find it hard sometimes. I hope everyone else is doing great, and you wonderful ladies are always in my thoughts and prayers. --Liz

almostmommaof2 - 74 days ago.
I went into day for my 32 week checkup. The babies head is measuring a little larger and the ventricles are in the high 20mm. I have been trying to control my gestational diabetes with diet but now am going to be started on insulin tomorrow. And to top it all off my amniotic fluid is high. Can anyone tell me if this has happened to them? What does this all mean? I look up things online and just find that it is all negative so I was thinking maybe one of you ladies have had this problem as well???

turtlemom - 74 days ago.
Hi Jess, Yes, it is Sheryal - http://www.i-am-pregnant.com/vip/sheryal. I haven't talked to her in a while. I pray all is well.

up north - 74 days ago.
hi I had my MRI today, was a little scary. Was in the machine for an hour and a half as baby kept moving whilst they were trying to scan so they had to repeat stuff. Am going back in two weeks for the results. Am just ready to have this baby already and deal with any problems once its here......only 3 weeks to go.

Havingfaith - 74 days ago.
Was her name Sheryal? u can find her on page 7 towards the bottom x

jess2008 - 74 days ago.
I can't find someone that has disappeared from my old messages! She lived in the UK and her little boy was born last fall and was named xavier. She had tons of problems getting him treated right after he was born and then he wen to the children's hospital and got a shunt. Later on he had some problems and ended up back in the hospital. I wanted to find her and see how her little one was doing. Does anyone form last fall remember her?

hedgebaby - 76 days ago.
Congratulations LinnyC - bet max is gorgeous. Enjoy him. Hope all goes well xxx

turtlemom - 79 days ago.
Just posted an update and added new pictures. I can't believe my daughter isn't a baby anymore?????

nurse - 80 days ago.
Turtlemom, Thanks for your post and directing me to your story. I'm very happy for your family and Parker. I watched one of the videos and she is such a doll! I'm currently 22 weeks and 2 days pregnant. My baby's vents have increased very rapidly from 10 MM at 19 weeks to 18 mm at 22 weeks. We visit the neurosurg to go over our fetal MRI results with him this coming Thursday and hopefully he can give me more insight to what is going on in there. I'm very nervous about all of this. I'm actually a pediatric rehabilitation nurse and I have worked with developmental disability children for over 5 years so I know the pain and hardships parents go through. Thanks again.

cjengo - 80 days ago.
Nordic - I wish I was more educated, but mostly I know the statistics. I do know there are two main strokes clotting, and bleeding. Baby's blood vessels are very 'fryable' and it's easy for them to rupture. Jude's stroke was a bleeding stroke bilateral and it caused a lack of oxygen to the brain. Jude loss brain function because of his stroke, but we didn't know this until he was 3 months. Even with the in utero MRI they never uttered the word "stroke" just brain bleed When the eye doctor looks she can actually see that his optic nerves are gray which is a good indication of a stroke. I would think if they saw a bleed and it was a ruptured vessel than yes it could be considered a stroke, but there are many brain bleeds that are just a bleed. You might ask a neurologist. I am sorry I could not help more :(

turtlemom - 80 days ago.
Congrats LinnyC!!!

turtlemom - 80 days ago.
Hi Nurse, check out my profile.

two-on-board - 80 days ago.
CONGRATULATIONS! Brilliant news Belinda! Now enjoy your little man and revel in how lovely he is! XXX

linnyc1981 - 80 days ago.
Hi everyone, sorry it has been a while but thought i would update you with my news. My beautiful baby boy - Max Oliver was born on the 28th August, a whole day of labour, followed by an emergency casear as he got stuck. He didint come out breathing but slight massagining of lungs helped him wake up :). i guess this is what happens when you force him to come out. i was induced as they thought i would be having an 11 pound baby - he turned out to be 8.3pounds. And may i say he is perfect!!!! All these worries about his ventricles etc. when they are in your arms it put everything into perspective. i keep saying it is amazing how he knows me so well and i have so much to learn about him. We havent had any excessive testing as yet, the neurologist came and had a good look and said there is no major neurological issues. It is amazing how they are always so careful in what they say. She said he is doing fine, but just needs to maintain meeting milestones now. We have an MRI booked for Monday - i am a little nervous to be honest, i look at him and he is so perfect- i dont want to know what else is going on. They cant give a prognosis on what it will look like anyway. We then meet with our paedritrician who will monitor baby Max over the next couple years. WOW what a journey!

nurse - 81 days ago.
I'm looking for advice. I'm pregnant with our first child. She is perfect, except for the ventricles that have been enlarging pretty rapidly in the past two weeks. Her last scan was today and its 18 mm on each side. I had a fetal MRI and everything looks good as of now, except the enlarged vents. They can't seem to pick up any other abnormality with the baby. They want to talk termination and I'm not quite ready to have that discussion before I get more information from other moms. Does anyone have any information or insight on this issue? Is it similar to anyone’s story? I've read through the pages and pages of posts and they seem to be running together. I thought if I posted my story, someone could help. Thanks so much. Oh and I have amino results pending and I go for a fetal EHCO to rule out any heart conditions but as of right now, no heart condition noted.

nordic - 81 days ago.
cjengo, i'm asking you since you know a lot about strokes, do you know if a subependymal bleed is the same thing or related to a stroke? after birth they did an ultrasound which showed that our boy had had a 'mild subependymal bleed' near the ventricles, but that this didn't have to be related to the ventricles being dilated. we had to go every week to have his head circumference measured in case the blod clots would block the ventricular fluid and turn into hydrocephalus. it turned out fine, but i'm curious has to how common this is. the doctor mentioned that it is often seen with premature babies, but that with them it happens in connection with birth.

cjengo - 81 days ago.
By the way guys yesterday was Jude's first bday! Please stop by and read his bday letter wwwcjengo.blogspot.com, thanks Amy for always checking in ;)

cjengo - 81 days ago.
babygirlontheway - Jude had a bilaterial brain bleed (bleeding stroke) before 19 weeks. You can see my blog at www.cjengo.blogspot.com, and you can email me with any questions at jennjennortiz@yahoo.com. Strokes happen 1 out of every 4000 births, and can cause problems with the ventricles. I respect your decision to deline testing, it just causes additional worry.

irishgal79 - 82 days ago.
Hi every1,i havnt posted on here in such a long,long time but always go on 2 read how every1 is doing!my baby boy turned 1 last thursday,he has severe hydrocephalus,im reading all your worrying comments and remembering that a year ago i was going thru all all your emotions&decisions.i blieve there is nothing you can do to make things better,try&enjoy your pregnancy,this is your wee baby&no mater what when you see your wee babys face youre gna luv your baby as much as ever,they need you more than anything!i was told my son would nvr smile&recently he has started laughn&smiln away,keep strong every1!ur all in my thoughts and prayers xxxxxxx

montrealmama - 82 days ago.
I'm 22 weeks today. Just got back from my follow-up U/S and not much has changed since my last one 2 weeks ago - ventricles up to 18 mm bilaterally, and cortex still nice and thick at 10mm. So my husband and I went straight to speak to our perinatologist. After our meeting with him we've decided to go ahead with the fetal MRI on Sept 11th - I'll be 23 and 1/2 weeks then.We'll get a better picture of all the baby's brain parts and any damage. This will include the corpus collosum (which hasn't yet been identified by U/S) and the location and severity of the aqueductal stenosis (it's usually between the 3rd and 4th ventricle.) Unlike 'Baby Girl On The Way' there's little discrepency bewteen the femur length and head circumference, so that's good news. And based on what the perinatologist explained to us, if we were to continue the pregnancy, I would have an U/S every 2 weeks so that they could deliver the baby early if the head circumference were to start getting dangerously big. That opens up a whole new worry of delivering a preemie. Our twin boys were born at 32 weeks, so we have the experience but that doesn't make it any less stressfull. I'm feeling dissappointed in not being able to enjoy all the kicks and movement of my baby girl. Now it's all worry and fear. How I'd love to go back 2 weeks and be carefree and excited to be pregnant again.