Vertical line across my skull...

Hey guys, not sure if this belongs here, so feel free to move it to the right place.

I've never really noticed this, but today I was touching my forehead and felt the skull underneath to be split in half by an indented line. Of course, my skull is intact, it's just that I don't know if this is normal. If I rub my fingers over it, I feel pressure in my ears. It's an uncomfortable feeling and I immediately have to stop messing with it because it makes me feel uneasy.

This may be something normal, I may have just never really noticed this because no one really talks about these sort of thing. However, I checked for pics of skulls on google and didn't find any skulls with a vertical line across the front.

I'm sure there's someone here that can tell me what it is, so I'll just wait for the first reply to make me feel stupid.

[edit on 24-4-2007 by Impreza]

you could be deformed. do you feel deformed.
or your pressing on the join in your skull hard enough to push the thin layer of fat aside making it feel straight.

What do you mean if I'm deformed and if I feel deformed? I'm normal, like most people.

I'm not pressing hard, at all. I touch the line as softly as possible, and still, I feel it. If I touch it now, especially higher near my hair-line, I will feel pressure in my ears for at least 5 more minutes. I can't believe I've never really noticed this before.

the deformed comments were what some may call humour though many find my humour hard too swallow. like raw egg.

but i suggest stop pressing the sensitive areas of your skull.
can you spell aneurysm.
see a doctor.

HI Impreza :-)

Does the line run across the top of the head from ear to ear. Or does it run from front to back (from brow to middle of neck at back)?

Have you asked your parents if you've ever had surgery or an accident?

Best to ask them and to visit a doctor, that way you might swiftly put your mind at ease.

Heads come in all shapes and variations, as you no doubt realise.

I was surprised to learn that with the passage of time, our skulls seem to change quite a bit, as evidenced not only by checking our own but by observing people of various ages.

Children's heads are usually quite nicely shaped (smooth and even). Obviously this changes with age, as is shown by a study of the heads of elderly folk -- which sometimes appear bony and distorted, similar to arthritic fingers. A lot of the variance is due to differences in fat distribution and gravity, no doubt. But I suspect the bones in the skull compress and move about with age too.

Sometimes, my head seems to 'expand' -- based on the tightness of my reading-glasses sometimes. At other times my glasses feel loose. Headaches seem to have this 'expansion' effect too, sometimes.

I never thought about my skull until a year or so ago, when I felt distinct 'corrugations' at the front of my skull, just above the brow. This was disconcerting. I thought my skull was collapsing or something. But I just had a 'feel' of this area a moment ago, and at the moment it's back to normal and smooth/corrugation free.

Toes, fingers, feet etc. swell and contract as result of various things. Guess it's logical to assume skulls might do also.

But I'd have it checked out by a doctor if I were you, just to make sure.

(Ps. You know about the 'disappearing brain' issue, don't you? If not, briefly: young man studying math at Oxford uni (I think) took part in research being conducted into 'brain size'. The researchers couldn't believe their eyes when they viewed his x-rays, because these showed the man had virtually no grey matter at all. They thought it was a mistake, re-did the x-rays. Same result. It was written up in Lancet or similar.

Six months or so later, they again x-rayed the man. This time, the x-rays showed almost normal amount of grey matter. So big question marks arose within the 'brain expert' ranks.

They x-rayed this man several times and discovered that his grey matter came and went. But it had no adverse effects upon him. He was doing well in math, was normally bright and healthy.

As consequence, researchers in the US x-rayed several hundred/dozen students' brains. They discovered a 'normal' young woman also had virtually no grey matter. And again, this had no adverse effects upon her, intellectually or physically etc.

Since then, researchers have discovered several dozen people, world wide, who suffer the same 'loss and later reconstitution of brain matter'. All are perfectly healthy and intelligent.

So, this evidenced 'lack of brain' has to be compared with scientists who claim to be able to 'locate' various physical and other functions within the physical brain. For example, they probe 'area 6' with electrodes and the patient's leg shoots up in the air. Hence, 'area 6' is claimed to be responsible for 'leg muscles' or whatever.

WHAT is 'responsible for leg muscles' when the patient *has* no (or little) discernible brain matter? Or when that patient's grey matter comes-and-goes?

For me, it's proof of the adage: ' The brain is the hardware, the Mind is the software' --- and of: ' The Brain is NOT the Mind' --- and of the speculation (which I personally believe to be true) that 'Mind' is located 'out there somewhere' (meaning in 'space' or the 'cosmos' or what we believe to be 'out there' --- when in fact 'out there' could actually be half an inch from where we're sitting right now).

Anyway, mentioned all this (a) because it's fascinating and (b) because *IF* (as has been documented) the physical 'brains' in some people are non-existent or exist on a come-and-go basis ---- well, this may well have a corresponding effect on the shape and size of the skull -- don't you think?

Anyway, once again, hope everything turns out well if and when you visit the doc :-)

the 'no-brainer' issue is real, strangely, brain matter can gradually disappear without visible symptoms.

web.archive.org...://www.enidreed.com/serv01.htm

people like these should try neural regeneration treatment, maybe they could consciously re-build their brains to normal size and gain serious 'calculating power' (bad analogy i know) in the process.

dude i have the same thing top of my forhead runs back about 3 inches, its no biggy its whe you were young and your skull in three parts merged together,.. i dont remeber the technical term for it , but most people have it.

Hello Dock6, those are some interesting points. Science has a lot of learning to do on the brain, it certainly is very very sophisticated.

Yes, with the passage of time, our skulls can take on different shapes, but I don't know if my skull has always been this way. I've only recently noticed it, but that doesn't mean it was not this way 10 years ago.

I have an appointment to go see my doctor next week (for a different case), and while there, I think I will mention this to him.

The line on my head is vertical, it starts from in-between my eyebrows and goes straight up to my hair-line. Another area of pressure I noticed is in my nose, mostly around my nostrils. At first I only felt pressure in my ears when I pressed against the line, but now it seems my nose is also affected. I've no idea why, so I'm hoping my doctor will make more sense of this. I'm sure he knows what it might be, it may even be common.

Anyway, thanks for all the feedback guys, you all take care!

Wow, fantastic stuff...

When I show people my "crack" in my skull they think I'm nuts, until they feel it.

Mine starts above my left ear, goes up vertically, and stops at a slight curve at the hair line above my left eye. Its only noticable if I have a closecut haircut... I don't know why I have it or when it formed... I can honestly fit my fingers into the groove, its thats wide, but no pain.. I get migraines and cluster headaches, but usually those happen on the other side of the noggin, behind my right eye.

Odd, I thought I was the only one with an odd skull...

haha, fun times... maybe its a minor version of that Rocky Dennis disease from the movie "Mask." I like to think its from a alien implant (joking).

Other then that, no idea.

It's normal. I have that, too. Take a look at this:
Frontal Bone

Its a cranial suture joint
remember the babies soft spot...that eventually filled in with cartiledge which then changed into bone and closed and formed sutures there as well

Originally posted by junglelord
Its a cranial suture joint
remember the babies soft spot...that eventually filled in with cartiledge which then changed into bone and closed and formed sutures there as well

Spot on. The only way for a human to pass out of the birth canal is if the cranial bones can deform during birth. Otherwise a fixed skull would result in death or a brain so small that the child would be non viable.

Babies have a soft spot or Fontanelle which will close usualy by the time the child is two. These eventualy close and the skull's plates fuse (not a great description but it will suffice in what is called a cranial sutures. Thats most likely the ridge you are feeling

Originally posted by Impreza
so I'll just wait for the first reply to make me feel stupid.

[edit on 24-4-2007 by Impreza]

yeah, you have what is known as "butt-head". That "indention" is what is known as your "buttcrack" and, in cases of normal individuals, would rest directly above the upper legs. If you don't get treatment you will start giggling densely and eating nacho's with your dimwitted friend.

Sorry...couldn't help myself.

If you don't feel bad, don't worry about it. If you feel bad, go see a doctor. if you have good insurance and want time off from work, see a doctor anyway. just have him/her check it out. Diagnosing anything on an internet forum is a bad idea, even if it is full of doctors.

a reply to: Impreza

I know you are probably no longer seeking a definitive answer to this but I saw no one gave the correct answer so I will post this in case someone else needs it, (and in case you want a factual answer).

The theory about "sutures" in the skull was close, but not right in this particular case. Sutures are strong, flexible bones that hold a child's head together allowing for growth while protecting the child's brain from damage. The child's head is comprised of six bony plates that fuse together as the child ages. Separated sutures are atypical. If sutures separate there are large, abnormal gaps that may be noticeable as indentations or bulges in a baby's head.

The four major sutures are the coronal suture (between the parietal and frontal bones), the lambdoidal suture (between the occipital and parietal bones), the sagittal suture (between the two parietal bones), and the squamous suture (between the parietal and temporal bones). None of which are in the exact location you described or could possibly have had the effect you indicated.


Not to worry; the exact location, shape and direction you perfectly describe the indentation to be, along with the symptom of being "uncomfortable" and noticeable in your ears when touched or palpated is nicely descriptive and obviously indicative of something else.

This is your tympanomastoid fissure, also known as your auricular fissure. A fissure is a long, channel-like cleft or crack-like hole for blood vessels and nerves. The tympanomastoid fissure carries the auricular branch of the vagus nerve through the bone structure. This is one of twelve cranial nerves. The vagus nerve runs throughout the body and is responsible for the function and regulation of several bodily systems such as the heart and digestive tracts.


It is no wonder that pressing on this fissure affected your ears and felt uncomfortable. The vagus nerve is also close to sinuses and the external auditory meatus of the temporal bone (forming the skull behind the ear with a "meatus", a tubelike opening or channel.) Perhaps your tympanomastoid fissure is a bit wider than most. If your sinuses were to become inflamed (by infection or even by any mild irritant such as dust) this might be intensified or painful as sinuses are all around your head, (and they are also normal, albeit hollow cavities - veritable holes in your skull .

You are very observant, as many people never know they have these fissures, (even after reading this question and presumably feeling their own heads before they make "thick-skull" remarks about deformation, etc.).

Hope this helps someone in future - btw if pain is present, see your physician - it could mean your sinuses need a check-up and even be a red flag of an acute infection. I suffer from migraines and sometimes find that the nerve becomes tender and inflamed from irritation. If you have these symptoms after an injury, fall or car wreck, (or migraine) see someone immediately because it could be more serious. I do not intend to provide a prognoses, diagnose, treat or cure any ailment of any kind. This is for entertainment/basic anatomical discussion of interest. Never rely on the internet for medical treatment or advice; your health is too valuable to chance with random, anonymous thick-skulls (yeah, like me). If you can't say something nice, say something logical!!

Best - Zealeish