<P> A fontanelle ( or fontanel ) ( colloquially , soft spot ) is an anatomical feature of the infant human skull comprising any of the soft membranous gaps ( sutures ) between the cranial bones that make up the calvaria of a fetus or an infant . Fontanelles allow for rapid stretching and deformation of the neurocranium as the brain expands faster than the surrounding bone can grow . Premature complete ossification of the sutures is called craniosynostosis . </P>
what are the fontanels and why are they important
anatomical feature of the infant human skull comprising any of the soft membranous gaps ( sutures ) between the cranial bones that make up the calvaria of a fetus or an infant allow for rapid stretching and deformation of the neurocranium as the brain expands faster than the surrounding bone can grow