Head Injury (cont.)
What are the causes of a head injury?
By definition, trauma is required to cause a head
injury, but that trauma does not necessarily need to be violent. Falling down a
few steps or falling into a hard object may be enough to cause damage. Motor
vehicle crashes account
for more than 50% of traumatic brain injuries, with sports related injuries
adding another 20%. Almost 80% of head injuries occur in males.
Penetrating head injuries describe those situations in which the injury
occurs due to a projectile, for example a bullet, or when an object is impaled though
the skull into the brain. Closed head injuries refer to injuries in which no
lacerations exist.
What are the symptoms of a head injury?
The symptoms of head injury can vary from almost none to
loss of consciousness and coma. As well, the symptoms may not necessarily occur
immediately at the time of injury. While a brain injury occurs at the time of
trauma, it may take time for enough swelling or bleeding to occur to cause
symptoms that are recognizable.
Initial symptoms may include a change in mental status, meaning an alteration
in the wakefulness of the patient. There may be loss of consciousness, lethargy,
and confusion.
Head injury symptoms may also include:
- vomiting,
- difficulty tolerating bright lights,
- leaking CSF from the ear or nose,
- bleeding from the ear ,
- speech
difficulty,
- paralysis,
- difficulty
swallowing, and
- numbness of the body.
Other symptoms may be more subtle and
include:
- nausea,
- dizziness,
- irritability,
- difficulty concentrating and thinking,
and
- amnesia.
Late signs of significant head injury and raised
pressure within the brain and skull include a dilated pupil,
high blood
pressure, low pulse rate, and
abnormal breathing pattern.
Coma may be present if the patient doesn't waken completely and
is defined as a prolonged episode of loss of consciousness. There are different
levels of coma, and the Glasgow Coma Scale is one way of measuring its depth.
Next: What is the Glasgow Coma Scale? »
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