Head Injury? Update and more questions, post #29/page 2

[Mickey'snewestfan]

It depends where the head injury is whether you start vomiting or not. My mother had a serious brain injury and was in a coma for 3 weeks and never threw up. And you know yourself that just having a bad headache can make you feel nauseous, so no wonder consider he was in a moving car at the time.

I would watch for any other symptoms and if you are suspicious head back to the ER. But then again, I've never heard of doctors prescribing ibuprofin for a head injury -- I guess they were sure there wasn't a bleed???

One other thing -- the person that got the head injury often isn't the best one to take advice from. Most people don't remember losing consciousness because they were...ummm...unconscious at the time. Most people, even with serious brain injuries, have no idea how badly they were hurt. You know your son and you know what he's usually like. You've been through enough injuries and sicknesses to know what is mild and what is more serious. Trust your instincts.

I think he'd know if he lost consciousness, because in my experience people at the ski hill come pretty quickly to ask if a kid is OK after he fell. He told me no one, including the friends he was with, got to him before he was back on his feet, which makes me think he sprang up pretty quickly.

My gut feeling is that he's a little foggy, but that could be the headache and the sleep deprivation. I don't think he's got a severe injury. It seems like we'd see more signs than a headache that seems to be getting better and one incident of vomiting almost 24 hours later. I think I'll keep a close eye, and see what the neuro people say on Thurs.

 

[mfd25wife]

I'm glad you took him in. Just watch him closely.

The person does not always know if they lose consciousness. We totaled a Tahoe in a wreck on the way to WDW. I told everyone from the firemen to the paramedics to the doctors that I never lost consciousness. DH is a paramedic and told them the same because I responded to questions, just not well. Apparently, it was fast and since I was obviously in pain, they thought I was awake the entire time. It wasn't until later that the neurosurgeon was assessing me and asked some questions that he realized I really was out. The nausea did not hit for a couple of hours after the accident. There are things I do not remember, people who were driving on the interstate who stopped to help, etc. that I have no recollection of so your son could have been out and not really known it. One thing DH told me to watch for was if a person asks the same things or says the same things repeatedly, they usually have a head injury.

 

[horseshowmom]

Update:

So, I basically waited through the night, waking him up every hour or so to make him talk to me. This morning I called the pediatrician, who asked me "is he irritable?" Ummm, he's a teenage boy and I keep waking him out of a sound sleep to ask him if his head hurts. Yes, he's irritable."

Anyway, the pediatrician asked us to make an appointment with the concussion center at our local children's hospital, and then if that appointment was more than a day away to go the ER. The concussion center can't see him until Thurs., so we went to the ER where they checked him out and said it was likely a mild concussion and to follow up at the concussion center. They gave him motrin and "NO PE" note, and sent us home.

Then, on the way home, the Steubensville story came on the radio and he asked me to explain it to him. I did, and when we stopped the car he threw up a tiny bit. So, now I don't know whether to rush back to the hospital (because vomiting with a head injury is a bad thing) or thank my lucky stars that I have the kind of kid who agrees me with that that story is horrifying.

I know that they told me to watch for vomiting. Maybe you could call the nurse line again and ask them.

 

[whatname]

Yes, people do not always know they have lost consciousness. My dr. told me he was in a car accident when he 1st came to this country and thought how wonderful the emergency response was here that they came so soon after the accident. He was actually unconscious before they arrived.

Don't mess around with head injuries. We are finding that even "mild" bumps are more serious than people thought in the past and need more intensive treatment than ever thought. Especially those brains that are still developing.

Hope things go well for you and your son.

 

[chris1gill]

Our daughter had a similar accident 4 years ago, she did hit her head and came back to our condo. We were told initially not to take her in even though she did lose consciousness... she had a concussion along with a neck sprain. Unfortunately she suffered from the neck sprain for several months, it was the end of her season to be sure, she unfortunately needed a lot of PT. Just for the record, we took her to the small local hospital which just let her go with nothing and we then brought her to the trauma center which was much more equipped to deal with her IMHO.... so if you take your son back just know you aren't the only parent that has done so!

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

Chris,

When you took him to the bigger hospital and they "did" something, what did they do? He just told me he didn't want dinner because he "didn't feel well". That's after I ordered his favorite caesar salad delivered to entice him to eat. So, I'm worried but I'm not sure what the ER would actually do if we went back in. We have an appointment with the neuro clinic for Thursday.

He's also very bored since they told him no computers, no TV, no video games, no sports and no homework.

 

[leebee]

Unless your son experiences sudden pain, vomiting, or cannot follow conversation and rambles, there probably isn't much more an ER will do for him, other than to tell you to watch him, and for him to not do anything that'll challenge his thought processes. My DD sustained a moderate concussion on Easter Sunday 2012. It was August before she felt she could think clearly, remember details completely, follow conversation and directions accurately, etc. The doctors told your son not to read or watch TV, no video games, etc., not so HE will "rest," but so that his brain isn't challenged. Brains need rest, and that means significantly limiting sensory input... and yes, that's boring, but necessary; his brain needs to heal. These days scientists/doctors know that concussions are far more than bumps on the head that make us confused, and that they take months to fully resolve.

DD has a friend who had a serious concussion,who spent a week in her room in the dark; they didn't want anything challenging her brain, not even light. Her mom said it was incredibly difficult but they did it, and it really seemed to help her healing. It was almost a year before this girl felt she had her faculties back. Hopefully your son's injury is mild and his brain will heal in a timely fashion.

 

[horseshowmom]

Based on some of these accounts, we were really lucky with my daughter's concussion from the kick in the head. She was a little headachey for a day or so, and that was about it. She recuperated really well.

OP, I hope your son is better soon!

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

OP here,

I kept him home today because he didn't sleep much last night. I'm not clear whether that's because he hadn't done anything all day and wasn't tired or because his head hurt or what, but the Dr. said to tell him to call to come home if he was tired, so I figured sending him exhausted was a bad idea.

He woke up around noon and is much more "himself". He says the side of his head (where the impact was) still feels bruised but there's not throbbing in his head. He also asked for Chipotle for lunch and gobbled it down, as opposed to yesterday when he asked for "just salad" for dinner and ate 3 bites.

Here's my next big question. The follow up clinic is apparently to do neuropsych testing to see if there are lingering cognitive effects. They called back today and said my insurance denied them. Without insurance it's $717 per visit and they couldn't tell me how many visits he'd need.

I can come up with $717, but it's a lot of money for us. If he needs it, of course we'll go, but I'm wondering if I could wait and see if I see anything before taking him. They said they usually schedule a few weeks out, so I assume it's not urgent to go right now? I have a call in to the ped's about what they suggest, but I'd love thoughts from here too.

I'll be honest and say without the Natasha Richardson story I would have given him some Motrin, and sent him to school. So to jump from that to 3 days of no school, the ER, $717 in medical bills, etc . . . seems like a lot. Just not sure.

 

[redrosesix]

the most important thing is that he was wearing a helmet. Like my mom's neurosurgeon said: "it's amazing -- no helmet, serious brain injury. Helmet, no injury or nothing that causes permanent damage".

Your son will probably be fine, especially based on what you posted last. But if the doctor set up the appointment I don't understand why the insurance is denying it. Can the doctor push it through? Sorry -- we don't have these issues, we live in Canada. It may be totally unnecessary but if our doctor referred us to a clinic, we would go.

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

My insurance only pays for "in network" people. DS has had multiple medical issues since birth, and we've never had an MD we wanted to see turned down by this insurance, but this would be a neuropsychologist, and the insurance company is much more picky about who they approve of for psych. things. We ran into this when he was tiny and the ped wanted him seen by a developmental psychologist to see if his medical issues were connected to anything developmental. The insurance initially argued that since it was a "psychologist" he should see a counselor first to see if talk therapy would work. I argued with them that talk therapy has limited utility with people who don't talk (he was 3 months old at the time), and that someone who mostly saw adults wouldn't work, and eventually they let us see an infant specialist.

So, it's possible I could fight them on this. I'll call them tomorrow and see.

 

[LiveYourLife]

OP here,

I kept him home today because he didn't sleep much last night. I'm not clear whether that's because he hadn't done anything all day and wasn't tired or because his head hurt or what, but the Dr. said to tell him to call to come home if he was tired, so I figured sending him exhausted was a bad idea.

He woke up around noon and is much more "himself". He says the side of his head (where the impact was) still feels bruised but there's not throbbing in his head. He also asked for Chipotle for lunch and gobbled it down, as opposed to yesterday when he asked for "just salad" for dinner and ate 3 bites.

Here's my next big question. The follow up clinic is apparently to do neuropsych testing to see if there are lingering cognitive effects. They called back today and said my insurance denied them. Without insurance it's $717
per visit and they couldn't tell me how many visits he'd need.

I can come up with $717, but it's a lot of money for us. If he needs it, of course we'll go, but I'm wondering if I could wait and see if I see anything before taking him. They said they usually schedule a few weeks out, so I assume it's not urgent to go right now? I have a call in to the ped's about what they suggest, but I'd love thoughts from here too.

I'll be honest and say without the Natasha Richardson story I would have given him some Motrin, and sent him to school. So to jump from that to 3 days of no school, the ER, $717 in medical bills, etc . . . seems like a lot. Just not sure.

Hi OP. Glad to see your Son is starting to seem more like himself, and is feeling better. If I were in your shoes, I would hold off on further testing. It doesn't seem like he needs it at this point. Now, if he starts to complain or appear to have memory loss, slurred speech, etc...then I would look into additional tests. I am interested to hear what your Ped says about this.

Is this clinic a reputable place? I only ask because it appears (based on what you posted) that they may be trying to take advantage by suggesting these tests that are not covered by insurance, and can't tell you how many testing sessions your Son would need.

I'm all about conservative treatment plans within reason, and this just seems like the clinic is suggesting you jump from point b to point q with the testing recommendations.

Best of luck to you, and I hope your Son continues to feel better!

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

Hi OP. Glad to see your Son is starting to seem more like himself, and is feeling better. If I were in your shoes, I would hold off on further testing. It doesn't seem like he needs it at this point. Now, if he starts to complain or appear to have memory loss, slurred speech, etc...then I would look into additional tests. I am interested to hear what your Ped says about this.

Is this clinic a reputable place? I only ask because it appears (based on what you posted) that they may be trying to take advantage by suggesting these tests that are not covered by insurance, and can't tell you how many testing sessions your Son would need.

I'm all about conservative treatment plans within reason, and this just seems like the clinic is suggesting you jump from point b to point q with the testing recommendations.

Best of luck to you, and I hope your Son continues to feel better!

The clinic is part of one of the top children's hospitals in the nation. He's been seen there by many other specialists (all of whom were covered) and they've generally been good. I don't think they're taking advantage, but with a head injury I think they keep testing until the child is "cleared" meaning they're back to normal. Given that, they can't tell me how long.

 

[LiveYourLife]

The clinic is part of one of the top children's hospitals in the nation. He's been seen there by many other specialists (all of whom were covered) and they've generally been good. I don't think they're taking advantage, but with a head injury I think they keep testing until the child is "cleared" meaning they're back to normal. Given that, they can't tell me how long.

Ah, I understand. I must have missed that in one of your previous posts. Sorry about that!

Keep us posted on what your Ped says.

 

[Southernmiss]

Ds had a concussion from playing soccer last January. He said that he blacked out for seconds when he collided with his team mate. DS told no one for 2 weeks that he thought he had trouble. When he told the school trainer, they refered him to a neurologist who ordered an MRI and then did the cognitive neuro tests.

He told DS the same thing to take it easy, get his rest, no soccer, limit computer, homework, tv and any stimulation to rest his brain.

DS went back after about 4 months for a recheck and discussion with the dr. because he wasn't bouncing back as quickly as DS hoped. Dr. told him it could take months-up to a year- to be 100%. So it's been a year and DS seems to have no lingering issues.

It can be scary and you are wise to seek treatment, but I think I would let your DS go to school tomorrow, see if you can get in with a dr. who is in your network and then follow up.

This might be a longshot, but sometimes the athletic departments at high schools now have neuro baseline concussion testing. Do you know anyone in your school's athletic department who might have this technology? They could at least see where your DS stands and if it's crucial to see the dr. based on those results.

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

Ds had a concussion from playing soccer last January. He said that he blacked out for seconds when he collided with his team mate. DS told no one for 2 weeks that he thought he had trouble. When he told the school trainer, they refered him to a neurologist who ordered an MRI and then did the cognitive neuro tests.

He told DS the same thing to take it easy, get his rest, no soccer, limit computer, homework, tv and any stimulation to rest his brain.

DS went back after about 4 months for a recheck and discussion with the dr. because he wasn't bouncing back as quickly as DS hoped. Dr. told him it could take months-up to a year- to be 100%. So it's been a year and DS seems to have no lingering issues.

It can be scary and you are wise to seek treatment, but I think I would let your DS go to school tomorrow, see if you can get in with a dr. who is in your network and then follow up.

This might be a longshot, but sometimes the athletic departments at high schools now have neuro baseline concussion testing. Do you know anyone in your school's athletic department who might have this technology? They could at least see where your DS stands and if it's crucial to see the dr. based on those results.

This is actually the clinic that does the neuro baseline for our high school. We'll see them this summer before he starts high school because he's a football player. Since he played youth football, I actually thought about asking if he could come in last summer instead, but I didn't. Now I'm regretting that.

I asked if he could see a neurologist instead of a neuropsychologist, because there are plenty of neurologists in network. The reply I got is that the neurologist would only look at the physical symptoms, but maybe I'll ask the ped. the same question.

 

[Southernmiss]

This is actually the clinic that does the neuro baseline for our high school. We'll see them this summer before he starts high school because he's a football player. Since he played youth football, I actually thought about asking if he could come in last summer instead, but I didn't. Now I'm regretting that.

I asked if he could see a neurologist instead of a neuropsychologist, because there are plenty of neurologists in network. The reply I got is that the neurologist would only look at the physical symptoms, but maybe I'll ask the ped. the same question.

Ahh. While we didn't have the baseline for DS last year either before his concussion, he did take the test to see where he was as far as reaction times, memory, etc. after he had his concussion. This was really helpful for the dr. to say "Yea, there is a problem" because DS did so poorly on the test.

It's not easy, is it, when there's a possible head injury. So much easier to see a broken bone and understand what's going on. I'll keep sending you and your DS good thoughts and continue to follow your progress.

 

[horseshowmom]

Based on what you said, I would probably watch him. I know it's scary, but in DD's case they didn't send her for any further examination, and she was kicked square in the forehead by a 1200 lb. horse with aluminum shoes on. As I said before, she did lose consciousness and saw stars beforehand.

I would make sure that he did very little for a few days and just monitored him very closely, but that's JMHO.

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

If you wouldn't get the testing, would you ask for accommodations at school? Midterms begin on Friday. I already emailed his counselor asking if his Friday test could be pushed back so he's had 3 more days to recover and to review the stuff he missed. Does that make sense?

 

[Bluestars]

This is actually the clinic that does the neuro baseline for our high school. We'll see them this summer before he starts high school because he's a football player. Since he played youth football, I actually thought about asking if he could come in last summer instead, but I didn't. Now I'm regretting that.

I asked if he could see a neurologist instead of a neuropsychologist, because there are plenty of neurologists in network. The reply I got is that the neurologist would only look at the physical symptoms, but maybe I'll ask the ped. the same question.

Are neuropsychologists not covered by your insurance plan or was the particular place not in your network? Are any neuropsychologists in your network?