What is head injury?
Head injury occurs when patients suffer from head and brain tissue injuries of violent forces, car accidents, or falling conditions.
Common symptoms
-
Headache
-
Sleepiness
-
Transient memory loss
-
Apathy
-
Disorientation of time and places
-
Nausea, vomiting, and dizziness
-
Inability to move and restlessness
-
Fixed and dilated pupil
-
Coma and even death
Treatment and Nursing
-
Keep airway patent to prevent chocking and aspiration pneumonia.
-
Observe changes of coma condition: check on the patients every 15 minutes for the initial phases and then once every 1-4 hours.
-
Have patients take anticonvulsants to prevent seizure.
-
Maintain balance between electrolyte and body fluid.
-
Patients with complications like increased intracranial pressure, doctors would prescribe medications to reduce it.
Pay attention to:
-
No food is allowed at the first day of the head injury; patients would be given some soup, milk, or juice on the 2nd day; no food intake if vomiting occurs.
-
When patients rest in bed, have them sleep with their head slightly lifted to 30 degree; avoid exertions like coughing and defecation.
-
Inform our medical staff immediately if there is any transparent liquid and bloody discharg from nose or ears; also do not sneeze or pick any external acoustic meatus.
-
Local ice packing for injured scalp.
-
Please return to emergence room if any of following situations occur:
-
Severe headache
-
Severe neck stiffness and pain
-
Continuous vomiting
-
Dyspnea
-
Sleepiness or unconsciousness
-
Numbness, weakness, and convulsion of the four limbs, weakness, convulsion.
-
Clear to pink otorrhea or rhinorrhea
-
Seizure
-
Unknown causes of fever
-
Bed rest
-
Maintain dryness and cleanness of the wound; avoid direct exposure of sunlight
-
Take medication on time
-
Outpatient Department follow up on time.
Conclusions
-
There is no brain saving drug available now but diuretic drugs for lowering intracranial pressure.
-
The symptoms of headache and dizziness may last for days to weeks; do not panic and just follow the instructions given by the doctors and have plenty of rest.
-
If there is no apparent change of a patient’s conscious status, no CT scan is required and it is mostly preserved for surgical decision making and outcome prediction. Such a examination is arranged by the doctors according to patients’ conditions.
中國醫藥大學附設醫院
連絡電話：(04)22052121分機 3207
若有任何疑問，請不吝與我們聯絡
Back
