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Children bump their heads all the time, be it from falling off the bed, rounding a corner too sharply, or being injured while playing a sport. But, while some head injuries are benign and will heal with time and rest, others can be more serious. How do you know whether your child’s head injury requires medical attention?
Mild Child’s Head Injury And Care At Home
It’s important to decipher between what is considered a “mild” head or brain injury and a moderate/severe one.
Because the forehead and scalp have such an abundant supply of blood, injuries that break the skin can lead to intense bleeding. Other accidents may also cause bruises and bumps on the head. In many instances, these are just superficial, mild wounds that will either heal themselves or require stitches.
Concussions are another type of mild head injury and are classified as mild traumatic brain injuries (TBI). These alter how the brain functions and can lead to symptoms such as:
- Altered levels of consciousness
- Headaches
- Confusion
- Dizziness
- Nausea and vomiting
Typically speaking, concussions heal by themselves over the course of a few weeks of rest at home. However, it’s important that a doctor diagnose such injuries. Ultimately, if you are worried about even mild symptoms, it’s better to be safe than sorry and take your child into the emergency room.
Getting Medical Help For Moderate To Severe Head Injuries
Moderate to severe traumatic brain injuries, on the other hand, are more serious matters. Such injuries can lead to:
- Bleeding or discharge from the ears or nose
- Vomiting multiple times
- Fits, seizures, twitches, or convulsions
- Blurred or double vision
- Difficulty speaking
- Loss of consciousness for extended periods of time
- Severe and persistent headaches
Children that experienced blunt trauma to the head and are experiencing any or all of the above symptoms should immediately be taken to the hospital for medical treatment. Through diagnostic tests, a doctor will have to determine whether emergency surgery is required and what treatments your child may need to fully recover.
If your child sustained a serious head injury as the result of another person’s negligence, your child and your family deserve to be properly compensated for the trauma and hardships you have endured. At Chatham Gilder Howell Pittman, our Mississippi child injury attorneys are standing by ready to hear your story and fight on behalf of your family.
Contact our firm to speak with our legal team for free today!
