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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 10 July 2025
Background: Aplasia Cutis Congenita is a rare congenital abnormality characterized by varying absence of skin and mesodermal tissues. Management remains controversial, with significant inconsistency across specialties and over time. This review evaluates trends in management based on journal specialty and publication epoch. Methods: A review of pediatric scalp Aplasia Cutis Congenita management was conducted. Articles were categorized by journal type (neurosurgery, plastic surgery, dermatology, other medical, and other surgical) and management approach (surgical, conservative, or combined). Descriptive statistics were used to summarize trends in recommendations, and assess associations between journal type and treatment. Trends over time were analyzed based on publication year. Results: A total of 171 studies were included. Among surgical journals, 33.7% recommended surgical management, while medical journals favored conservative (14.1%) or combined approaches (84.5%) (p < 0.001). Recommendations for surgical management decreased from 80% in the 1970s to 30% in the 2020s. Notably, among 119 studies advocating for a combined approach, only 27 provided criteria for surgical indications, with lesion thresholds ranging from >1cm to >15 cm. Conclusions: This study highlights the lack of guidelines for ACC management and reveals specialty and time epoch of publication-dependent biases in treatment. These findings emphasize the need for multidisciplinary guidelines for consistent, patient-centered care.