A prospective search for congenital dermal abnormalities of the craniospinal axis.

Nineteen-hundred and ninety-seven consecutive term newborn infants were examined for cutaneous abnormalities of the craniospinal axis. Fifty-eight of the neonates (3%) had one or more abnormalities. The major findings included 28 (1.4%) deep dimples; 23 (1.2%) presumed sinuses; six (0.3%) skin tags,and one nodular mass. Fifty children were seen in follow-up at 4 to 12 months; in 40 infants the initial major finding persisted unchanged. Surgery has been performed on five children. One dermal sinus was found to terminate at the dura, three sinuses terminated at the coccyx, and a skin tag was associated with a fibrous band that extended to the coccyx. The management of congenital dermal sinuses is discussed.