Paediatric cranial ultrasound: abnormalities of the brain in term neonates and young infants

Cranial ultrasound is a critical screening tool in the detection of cerebral abnormalities in term neonates and infants, and is complementary to other imaging modalities. This pictorial review illustrates the diverse central nervous system pathologies which can affect the term neonatal and infantile brain, including vascular abnormalities (hypoxic ischaemic injury, perinatal arterial ischaemic stroke, cerebral sinovenous thrombosis, vein of Galen aneurysmal malformations, subpial haemorrhage, and dural sinus malformations); infections (congenital (cytomegalovirus and toxoplasmosis) and bacterial meningoencephalitis); genetic disorders and malformations (callosal agenesis, tuberous sclerosis, developmental megalencephaly, lissencephaly-pachygyria, and grey matter heterotopia); tumours (choroid plexus papilloma, atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumour, and desmoplastic infantile glioma) and trauma (birth-related, inflicted injury). Each condition is explored with a focus on its sonographic characteristics—some have rarely, if ever, been described on ultrasound.