Head trauma (peds)
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Definition
- Normal mental status at the initial examination
- No abnormal findings on neuro exam
- No physical evidence of skull fx
Background
- Persistence of HA, confusion, and amnesia suggests concussion
- Worsening of symptoms suggests intracranial injury
- Scalp hematoma in <2yo is assoc w/ incr risk of skull fx, ICH
- Clinical symptoms (HA, vomiting, behavior change) do not correlate well with ICH
Work-Up
(Consider PECARN Study. PECARN Pediatric Head Injury/Trauma Algorithm at http://www.mdcalc.com/pecarn-pediatric-head-injury-trauma-algorithm/)
Do I need to obtain a head CT?
< 2yr old
- No CT is necessary if ALL are found:
- Normal mental status
- No scalp hematoma except frontal
- LOC <5s
- Non-severe mechanism
- Severe mechanism = pedestrian or bicyclist w/ohelmet struck by motorized vehicle
- Severe mechanism = fall >1m or 3ft
- Severe mechanism = head struck by high-impact object
- No palpable skull fracture
- Normal behavior per parents
>2yr old
- No CT is necessary if ALL are found:
- Normal mental status
- No LOC
- No vomiting
- Non-severe mechanism:
- Severe mechanism = pedestrian or bicyclist w/o helmet struck by motorized vehicle
- Severe mechanism = fall >2m or 5ft
- Head struck by high-impact object
- No signs of basilar skull fracture
- No severe headache
Disposition
- Discharge if:
- Asymptomatic after 2-4hr obs (not vomiting, nl neuro exam, nl mental status)
- Head CT normal (delayed deterioration after normal CT is near zero)
- Consider discharge if:
- Nondisplaced fx w/o intracranial injury (in consultation w/ neurosx)
See Also
- Head Trauma (Main)
- GCS (Peds)
- Concussion
- Skull Fracture
- Abuse (Nonaccidental Trauma)
- Maxillofacial Trauma
Source
- Tintinalli
- Kupperman N, Holmes JF, Dayan PS, et al: Identification of children at very low risk of clinically-important brain injuries after head trauma: a prospective cohort study. Lancet 374(9696): 1160, 2009
- Holmes et al. Do Children With Blunt Head Trauma and Normal Cranial CT Require Hospitalization for Neurologic Observation?, Annals of Emergency Medicine, vol 58, 2011