Head Injury

Question: Head injury? I took a substantial blow to my head a few days ago. I am not aware whether i sustained a concussion or not. The pain in my head is still pretty bad. I have hit my head very hard in many occasions in the past, even breaking the skin more than once. I guess what my question is, since I have hit my head I've been struggling more than usual with reading and writing. Could this be a coincidence or is it probable that it is related to the recent injury? If so, would this issue be permanent or temporary? Also, I'm pretty terrible at math, could this be due to former head injuries? I've read some online but I am unable to find a good source.

Answer: symptoms of a concussion are -severe headache that doesn't stop -nausea/vomiting -confusion (not remembering where you are, what year it is,etc) -being overly sleepy -blurred vision if you aren't experiencing any of these, then chances are you didn't sustain a concussion. the problems you are currently experiencing with your reading and writing (especially if they are new issues) could possibly be related to past injuries. follow up with your family dr about getting a referral to see a neurologist to be evaluated.

Question: What is the chance of surviving a second severe head injury? A friend of mine sustained a very severe head injury about two years ago and has never been the same since. Last night he got into a brawl and was knocked unconcious by the fighter. I heard that the blows from the fight weren't that serious. He got up and walked away from the fight, however, later he began puking up blood and others called an ambulance. He was flown out by helicopter to a critical care unit in Westchester County. He is currently under a medicated coma and is on life support. Whats the chance of surviving TWO head tramas?

Answer: Assuming that the damage is not compounded, there really isn't any codependence. Statistically, the odds of surviving any type of accident don't change based upon previous history. For instance, the odds of surviving a lightning bolt might be 50%. That does not meant that if you get hit again, you're automatically going to die. If you're all healed up and in the same condition when the second bolt hits, you're back to 50% (or maybe a little less...since you might be a little older, a little weaker, etc..). However, if the 2nd bolt struck you while you were recovering in the hospital and connected to a pace maker, it wouldn't be an independent event.

Question: Is it bad to go to sleep after a major head injury? I've heard that if you've had a head injury and vomited because of it, or had a concussion, you shouldn't go to sleep without seeing a doctor. Is this true? If so, why?

Answer: This is FALSE. It used to be recommended for observation purposes, but is no longer thought to be necessary. This is akin to an "old wives tale" nowadays. When to seek medical help: Anyone who has suffered a blow to the head, has fallen on his or her head, or has been in a situation, such as a car accident, where deceleration has occurred, should get checked by a doctor. Because the effects of traumatic brain injury aren’t always immediately apparent, it’s better to be safe than sorry. The quality and immediacy of treatment following a traumatic brain injury can have a significant effect on the survivor’s long-term outcome. Symptoms of Traumatic Brain Injury Symptoms of traumatic brain injury can be immediate, or they can appear after several days or weeks. Common symptoms of traumatic brain injury include: * Headache * Nausea * Dizziness * Vomiting * Vision disturbances * Fatigue Seeking Emergency Care Any time loss of consciousness occurs after an accident, the victim should be taken immediately to an emergency room. Other symptoms that indicate emergency care is needed include: * Convulsions * Weakness and numbness in the arms, legs, hands, or feet * Repeated vomiting * Slurred speech

Question: What prognosis can we expect for a head injury patient? A few days ago my brother, a long distance truck driver, had a heart attack while driving and ran the truck off the road, where it rolled several times. He survived the accident (he was wearing a seat belt), but suffered a head injury. He was rated as extremely critical upon arrival at the hospital and stopped breathing a couple of times. His coma was rated very low, near death. However, four days later, he's still considered comatose, but he's able to follow some directions and can speak some. Today he was able focus his eyes on someone and answer some simple questions. Does anyone have any experience with head injury patients and can tell us what to expect as to his chances of recovery or how much he can recover?

Answer: no one can predict what the damage is, they can tell you the severity but not what is affected and how badly. this will be a slow process, take it easy with him and don't push, let him recover in his own time. there are things you can do to 'stimulate' his mind though, photos, objects from home he holds dear, recordings from family and friends. i was in a care accident years ago and went through the windshield and suffered a subdural hematoma, basically bleeding inside the skull...it caused some damage, mostly speech and recall issues. i have had three concussions over my lifetime including this one and mostly i just struggle with getting words out, not stuttering because i know what i want to say but there's just a break down in the connection from brain to verbalization. that major head trauma was 30 yrs ago. i had an uncle who died a few years ago of natural causes but he was in wwII and was the only survivor of 10 a plane crash, he was in a coma for 8 years and one day he just woke up and spoke his wife's name (although she had divorced him 5 yrs earlier because the doc's said he would always be a vegetable and there were no detectable brain waves) anyway, he just woke up and within a few weeks with rehab mainly for his limbs from lack of use he was out of the va hospital and home talking and walking as normal . he did lose the majority of his eyesight and he had what they call a permanent shunt inserted into his skull (its basically a tube that drains the fluid buildup - i guess its to do with the type injury he had) other than that he was very able and lived well into his 80's when he died of natural causes. so who knows what will happen for your brother, he has sustained two major traumas but a lot depends on his fighting spirit too. i would just encourage you and your family to love him and keep talking to him about everything, childhood and family memories, family happenings, holidays...really anything that could trigger a positive response. reading his favorite books to him whether he seems to respond or not is good too. i remember after my concussion that i could hear all that was going on around me but i could not respond so i think deep down he will hear you. good luck.

Question: What are the guidelines for prehospital hyperventilation of head injury patients? Paramedics in Canada, have in the past been told to hyperventilate head injury patients to decrease ICP. I know that I have recently read studies and different guidelines that do not recommend hyperventilation prehospital at all. I am interested in hearing any input either for or against. I have been searching the Canadian Heart and Stroke guidelines for anything related and I can't find what I am looking for. Also, if any medics from other countries have any protocals or guidelines for the same you could share.

Answer: "Current Statewide Basic Life Support Adult and Pediatric Treatment Protocols stipulate that hyperventilation, at a rate of 20 breaths per minute in an adult and 25 breaths per minute in a child, should be employed in major trauma whenever a head injury is suspected, the patient is not alert, the arms and legs are abnormally flexed and/or extended, the patient is seizing, or has a Glasgow Coma Scale of less than 8. The State Emergency Medical Advisory Committee has reviewed these protocols, and concludes, on the basis of recent scientific evidence, that in the patient with severe traumatic brain injury (Glasgow Coma Scale score < or = to 8) following open or closed head injury, aggressive hyperventilation should be avoided in the prehospital setting, unless there are active seizures or signs of transtentorial herniation. Although hyperventilation was used throughout the 1970s and 1980s in the acute management of severe traumatic brain injury, its use has undergone critical reappraisal in recent years. This has occurred following the publication of several reports linking excessive hyperventilation (PaCO2 < 25 mm Hg) to cerebral ischemia, as well as a large prospective randomized study which failed to demonstrate any benefit, but instead demonstrated a slight detriment, to head injured adult patients ventilated to achieve a PaCO2 of 25 mm Hg versus head injured adult patients ventilated to achieve a PaCO2 of 35 mm Hg." Out of the New York Prehospital Protocols, United States

Question: Can a head injury cause eyes to turn red while you sleep? after 2 months. When I wake up from sleeping, my eyes are bloodshot red, could this be related to the head injury I suffered over 2 months ago. It could also be something else, but only seems to happen either when my contacts are in or after I wake up. In which case my contacts arent usually in at night or in the morning to have caused the red eyes while I sleep.

Answer: Ask an ophthalmologist or optometrist. Try changing brand of contacts. Drops also might help. It's probably irritation. It could be broken blood vessels, but I don't think that they would heal during the day and then recur every night. That just seems very unlikely.

Question: Is it possible to get a brain tumor from a head injury? Is it possible to get a Meningioma (A type of brain tumor) From a head injury? The head injury ended with broken jaw and a concussion. My thought personally is no. Thanks, it was my grandpa, he got beat up and he thinks the guys gave him the brain tumor.

Answer: Meningiomas have occassionally been reported as occuring directly below the site of focal injury to the skull. Reference - Oxford Text Book of Medicine 2007 edition under Intracranial Tumours. I know two instances , of such occurence during my practice This book is the standard Text book for reference for the MRCP (UK)

Question: Due to a recent head injury, a client is told that his pituitary is hypersecreting prolactin. Is there need fo? Due to a recent head injury, a client is told that his pituitary is hypersecreting prolactin. Is there need for concern about this young man?

Answer: Yes. Hyper = too much so he is secreting too much prolactin. He may lactate (produce milk). It will problably effect his mood, his libido, his sexual ability... so I would say that he needs to be treated. There are medications available that reduce the prolactin. Parlodel and dostinex. In addition, just to be safe, I would continue to get his other hormones checked on a regular basis as he may continue to have problems and they may appear later. Mood may be a big indicator of hormone issues.

Question: can head injury cause you to think the complete opposite of the truth? Is it possible that 6 days after a head injury requiring brain scans, passing out etc., can cause you to think and say the complete opposite of what you really believe?

Answer: Not as far as I know. This is called hypocrisy.

Question: Can a head injury cause total retrograde amnesia? Is it possible that a person forgets everything he/she has lived until the moment she sustains the head injury? By "Total" I mean the person forgets *everything* she has lived I've made my research in wikipedia before asking this question, so copy/paste from wikipedia isn't really what I'm looking for here.

Answer: Yes, a trauma sustained by a head injury may result in retrograde amnesia and a " total " loss or partial loss of all long-term memory ( prior to the injury ) is a problem for these kind of patients. However, some " implicit memory " is still found compared to the case of " total " lose of the " explicit memory ". This is one of the reason why patients with retrograde amnesia receive priming of their memory and some can't be helped at all. Good Luck !