Head injury can be simple as small swelling on head due to trival fall at home to as serious as large blood clot in head after road accident making person unconscious, having vomiting, and seizures.
There is primary injury to head due to actual trauma, which can be only prevented. Secondary injury to brain occurs after this event and can cause increase in swelling of brain in turn increasing the pressure inside brain resulting in weakness, seizures and breathing difficulty. Neurosurgical management in hospital is directed toward the treatment of this secondary injury to the brain.
Orange City Hospital encourages the public to learn as much as they can about head injuries. To help, we have prepared a list of frequently asked questions and answers that you might have.
Most of the small trauma to head does not require treatment in young and adults. But in the elderly age group, there may be chances of developing chronic slow bleeding after minor trauma to head. So, if there is forgetfulness, increase in headache, vomiting, seizure /fits, bleeding from the nose or ear neurosurgeons consultation is required to rule out serious head injury. Thus, it becomes important to observe the geriatric population after a head injury for a few days following.
Symptoms are due to direct damage to the brain or secondary to raised intracranial pressure
Head injury are graded as mild, moderate and severe depending on GCS – Glassgow Coma scale – a scoring used internationally for grading the head injury by doctors.
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Initial Glassgow coma score (3- 15)
Yes, forgetting how the trauma happened is the confirmatory sign of head injury.
No. All head injury patients usually don’t require brain imaging.
Hospital Admission is required for all patients at higher risk for complications including:
A – Alcohol
E – Endocrine/ Electrolyte
I – Insulin
O – Opiate/Oxygen
U – Uremia
T – Toxin/Trauma/Temperature
I – Infections
P – Psychiatric/ porphyria
S – SAH, Stroke, Space Occupying Lesion inside the head, Shock
