Head trauma

The head trauma It is any trauma that occurs to the head; if it is more superficial, it will affect the scalp, and if it is more intense, it can affect the skull or brain. In most cases, it will be a simple superficial bulge since the skull is made up of a set of bones that protect the brain; in cases where the trauma is significant, there may be a brain injury.

How is it produced?

The head trauma It can occur in any circumstances in which we can hit the head; Among the most frequent causes we must highlight traffic accidents, but we must also remember accidental falls, assaults or fights, accidents that take place at work, those that occur at home, or while practicing some type of sport.

What are the consequences?

In cases where the head injury has been minor, the person will have a mild headache and possibly a localized bulge; There may be a loss of consciousness, but it will be short-lived, less than 15 minutes. In these cases, which are the majority, the person will have suffered a brain shake, but without causing any brain injury.

In some cases there may be an internal injury, either to the bone structure, or even to its internal organ, the brain. In addition, the symptoms can appear after having suffered the blow, or they can appear after a few hours, or even a few days. It is also possible that there is a brain injury, without damage to the skull.

We must suspect that there is an internal injury, that is to say at the brain level, which would imply a moderate or severe head trauma, when the person who has suffered a significant blow to the head presents:

• Loss of consciousness lasting more than 15 minutes.
• blood coming out of the ears.
• Uneven pupil size.
• Seizures
• Facial bruise.
• Drowsiness, confusion, loss of consciousness.
• Recurrent vomiting, stiffness in the back of the neck, and / or severe headache.
• Lack of coordination or clumsiness in movements.
• Alteration in speech or mobility of any part of the body.

What should we do with a moderate or severe head injury?

If you present any of the above symptoms, we must notify the emergency medical service by phone so that an ambulance can notify the person to be able to transfer the person to a health center where they will perform the appropriate complementary tests to rule out an internal injury.

While we wait for the emergency service to arrive, we must perform the following steps:

• 1º Observe respiration and circulation; If the person is not breathing and does not have a pulse, in the case of knowing the cardiopulmonary resuscitation maneuvers, they can be started.
• 2º If the person breathes and has a pulse but is unconscious, we cannot mobilize him since he could have a spinal injury that could be aggravated by mobilization.
• 3rd If you have a bleeding wound, we must try to contain it with a clean piece of cloth. If the wound is on the head, we cannot apply strong pressure, it is preferable to cover the wound with sterile gauze.
• 4th If he is vomiting, the person must be prevented from choking on the content of the vomit; For this we can turn the head, neck and body as if it were a whole block.

What should we do with a mild head injury?

During the first 24 hours after suffering a low intensity blow to the head, we must monitor the appearance of any of the symptoms that we have mentioned before. To do this, if the person is sleeping we must wake him up every 2 or 3 hours. In the case of having a headache, you can take paracetamol, avoiding aspirin or other anti-inflammatories.

What should NOT we do with a head injury?

• If there is an object protruding from the wound, we should not remove it.
• In the event that the injured person wears a helmet, and there is suspicion of serious head trauma, do not withdraw the case.
• Do not drink alcoholic beverages.