<entry id="2332734" stat="A" corpus="jmdict" type="jmdict">
<ent_corp type="jmdict">jmdict</ent_corp>
<ent_seq>1653010</ent_seq>
<k_ele>
<keb>頭頂</keb>
<ke_pri>news2</ke_pri>
<ke_pri>nf38</ke_pri>
</k_ele>
<r_ele>
<reb>とうちょう</reb>
<re_pri>news2</re_pri>
<re_pri>nf38</re_pri>
</r_ele>
<sense>
<pos>&n;</pos>
<xref type="see" seq="1450880">頭頂部</xref>
<field>&anat;</field>
<s_inf>usu. as 頭頂部</s_inf>
<gloss>top of the head</gloss>
<gloss>crown of the head</gloss>
<gloss>vertex</gloss>
<gloss>(the) parietal</gloss>
</sense>
<info>
<audit time="2020-02-02 07:59:01" stat="A">
<upd_uid>jwb</upd_uid>
<upd_name>Jim Breen</upd_name>
<upd_email>...address hidden...</upd_email>
<upd_detl>Aligning.</upd_detl>
<upd_diff>@@ -16,0 +17 @@
+&lt;field&gt;&amp;anat;&lt;/field&gt;
@@ -18 +19 @@
-&lt;gloss&gt;vertex (anat.)&lt;/gloss&gt;
+&lt;gloss&gt;vertex&lt;/gloss&gt;</upd_diff>
</audit>
<audit time="2024-11-30 12:15:13" stat="A" unap="true">
<upd_diff>@@ -16 +15,0 @@
-&lt;pos&gt;&amp;adj-no;&lt;/pos&gt;</upd_diff>
</audit>
<audit time="2024-12-01 22:34:41" stat="A">
<upd_uid>jwb</upd_uid>
<upd_name>Jim Breen</upd_name>
<upd_email>...address hidden...</upd_email>
</audit>
<audit time="2025-02-04 19:19:57" stat="A" unap="true">
<upd_name>Brian Krznarich</upd_name>
<upd_email>...address hidden...</upd_email>
<upd_detl>Notes at 頭頂部.  Trying to figure out how to give some indication of usage between the two.

Looking at various data, it appears that "vertex" and "parietal" are both adjectives in the anatomical sense, and a whole raft of terms are simply using 頭頂 as a prefix, without の. 

This term most definitely can mean "top of the head", but it seems you'd only use it that way in limited contexts. I'm not even sure what those contexts would be.

sankoku tags 頭頂 as [form], but 頭頂部 quite clearly is not.  If you're talking about pain or baldness, you should use 頭頂部.</upd_detl>
<upd_refs>頭頂部の毛　1077	92.1%
頭頂の毛　　93	7.9%


From eijiro (there are more)
https://eow.alc.co.jp/search?q=%e9%a0%ad%e9%a0%82
頭頂ブロック
parietal block《医》
subparietal《解剖》
頭頂下溝
subparietal sulcus
頭頂中央部
centroparietal area
頭頂位
vertex presentation《医》
頭頂側頭領域
parietal temporal region
頭頂像
vertex view</upd_refs>
<upd_diff>@@ -15 +15 @@
-&lt;pos&gt;&amp;n;&lt;/pos&gt;
+&lt;pos&gt;&amp;adj-f;&lt;/pos&gt;
@@ -17 +16,0 @@
-&lt;gloss&gt;top of the head&lt;/gloss&gt;
@@ -19,0 +19,8 @@
+&lt;/sense&gt;
+&lt;sense&gt;
+&lt;pos&gt;&amp;n;&lt;/pos&gt;
+&lt;xref type="see" seq="1450880"&gt;頭頂部&lt;/xref&gt;
+&lt;xref type="see" seq="1450880"&gt;頭頂部・1&lt;/xref&gt;
+&lt;misc&gt;&amp;form;&lt;/misc&gt;
+&lt;s_inf&gt;for everyday speech, usu. as 頭頂部&lt;/s_inf&gt;
+&lt;gloss&gt;(the very) top of the head&lt;/gloss&gt;</upd_diff>
</audit>
<audit time="2025-02-16 04:51:37" stat="A">
<upd_uid>jwb</upd_uid>
<upd_name>Jim Breen</upd_name>
<upd_email>...address hidden...</upd_email>
<upd_detl>I think this is a bit overdone. It's really one sense.</upd_detl>
<upd_refs>GG5, etc.
頭頂	146446	  
頭頂部	104225</upd_refs>
<upd_diff>@@ -15,6 +14,0 @@
-&lt;pos&gt;&amp;adj-f;&lt;/pos&gt;
-&lt;field&gt;&amp;anat;&lt;/field&gt;
-&lt;gloss&gt;vertex&lt;/gloss&gt;
-&lt;gloss&gt;parietal&lt;/gloss&gt;
-&lt;/sense&gt;
-&lt;sense&gt;
@@ -24,3 +18,6 @@
-&lt;misc&gt;&amp;form;&lt;/misc&gt;
-&lt;s_inf&gt;for everyday speech, usu. as 頭頂部&lt;/s_inf&gt;
-&lt;gloss&gt;(the very) top of the head&lt;/gloss&gt;
+&lt;field&gt;&amp;anat;&lt;/field&gt;
+&lt;s_inf&gt;usu. as 頭頂部&lt;/s_inf&gt;
+&lt;gloss&gt;top of the head&lt;/gloss&gt;
+&lt;gloss&gt;crown of the head&lt;/gloss&gt;
+&lt;gloss&gt;vertex&lt;/gloss&gt;
+&lt;gloss&gt;(the) parietal&lt;/gloss&gt;</upd_diff>
</audit>
</info>
</entry>