It’s every new parent’s worst nightmare! Their babies bumping their head on the crib, a toy, someone’s leg, a table, or any other object they can get their head near, and then parents immediately worry about a concussion. But when is it an emergency and when is it okay to let your child rest before playtime again?
Let’s look at some of the top 8 facts about child head injuries to help alleviate your fears.
- Two age groups are accident-prone – young children under the age of four and teens between fifteen and nineteen years old. Before the age of four, your child doesn’t have the best head and neck muscle control, and they lack coordination.
- A concussion is a brain injury. Therefore, this needs to be treated with care as it can result in permanent consequences.
- Concussion symptoms vary. Kids can react differently to having a concussion. The main signs you should look out for are dizziness, headache, confusion, nausea, or feeling foggy. Children younger than two might seem unusually sleepy, excessively irritable, and are not able to be comforted.
- A person who just had a concussion needs be examined by a medical professional. The question for most parents is should you see a doctor right away or could you wait until morning? The first step is to call your pediatrician, but if your child is very young, you may want to be more progressive and go to the emergency center.
- After four to six hours, you don’t have to worry as much unless your child’s symptoms are getting worse. Professionals are less concerned about concussions when it’s been four to six hours.
- Children with concussions are able to sleep. It used to be considered not okay to allow a child with a shock to sleep, but medical professionals now agree that sleeping will not add any harm especially if the incident occurred within regular hours.
- Concussions don’t usually cause long-term damage if they are adequately treated. Children do not suffer any long-term loss.
- Concussed children shouldn’t be allowed to continue to play until they are fully recovered. Whether it’s on the athletic field or on the playground, when children sustain concussions, they should rest. Otherwise, they become at a higher risk of a more severe injury. Do not allow your child to return to play without a medical evaluation stating they can.
- Sports coaches are not always as well informed as you might hope. always ask your child’s coach what are the measures taken in case of an accident.
- Eighty to ninety percent of children who have suffered a concussion will recover within two to three weeks. However, children might feel a bit down when they can’t play, so you need to be a little more supportive than usual.
- The critical thing to remember is if you feel your child is in danger, then take them to the doctor immediately.