Update

Payton had her CT scan yesterday morning.  I took the morning off work and about 8:30 one of the nurses called to say that our insurance company was not going to approve the CT.  So...I called our company and was a little short with them.  After much calling back and forth between the insurance company and our doctor's office, it finally got approved.  The actual CT only took like 5 minutes.  Chad stayed in the room with her while I waited outside.  He sang to her the whole time!  I'm sure the nurses appreciated that!  :)  It actually really calmed her down to hear his voice.  Chad went back to work and then I took Payton to daycare and went to school for the afternoon.  They said they would have the results within a couple days.

Payton's pediatrician called this afternoon and her suture is indeed closed. Not sure what all this means. Her pediatrician is referring us to a neurological specialist in Iowa City. She said that they may decide to do nothing, or it may need to be corrected with surgery. There is just one suture that is closed, the metopic suture. She still does have a soft spot on the top of her head, so that is a good thing. I am not sure what age this metopic suture is supposed to close. I think it's around 1 year. ?? I am trying to remain calm and not freak out too much, but it's hard. The waiting is the hardest part. They are supposed to get an appointment set up in Iowa City, but I don't know how long we'll have to wait. Please keep us in your prayers.

Here is a study that my friend Kristy found online.  It sounds reassuring:

RESULTS: The earliest evidence of metopic suture closure was at 3 months, the age at which 33% of patients (4/12) were closed. At 5 months of age, 59% (13/22) of sutures were closed. At 7 months of age, 65% (15/23) were closed. At 9 months of age, 100% (10/10) were closed. All patients greater than 9 months of age within the study had complete metopic suture closure. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that normal or physiologic closure of the metopic suture occurs much earlier than what has been previously described. This study establishes that metopic fusion may normally occur as early as 3 months of age, and that complete fusion occurred by 9 months of age in all patients in our series. Therefore, 3-D CT scans showing complete closure of the metopic suture at an early age (3 to 9 months) cannot be considered as evidence of metopic synostosis, and thus, should not be the decisive factor for early surgical intervention.