As anybody who’s ever been a parent (or educator, or pediatrician, or trainer) can tell you, kids are not just little adults they are basically different beings in terms of emotional maturity and intellectual development.
As any best Neurosurgeon in Mumbai can tell you, children are also very different from adults when it emanates to risk dynamics, behavioural influences, and neurology treatment.
When parent and brain surgeon converge over a child who’s met with a head injury, parents are reasonably concerned about how to cope up with the injury. In kids, injury from a concussion might last longer than anticipated.
In both children and adults, neurotrauma also includes decreased emotional and cognitive abilities. Adults, though, tend to have more physical symptoms such as headache, balance difficulties, and fatigue. Children are more inclined to show behavioral symptoms such as insomnia, irritability, and sleepiness.
It’s essential for parents to be on the guard for these neurotrauma signs and symptoms, and not think their child is okay just since he/she doesn’t have a headache.
It is also significant to note that children’s brains are in a continuous process of developing and strengthening important connections between cells, a progression called as ‘myelination’. This progression is similar to covering electrical wires with plastic to enhance and shield an electrical signal as it flows along a circuit.
Partial myelination is one key reason why children might experience a lengthy loss of memory after a head injury. They will be conscious and walking around, but later they will not recollect anything from the time instantly after the head injury. Post-traumatic amnesia is generally brief, but it has a tendency to occur more often and last for a long time in children than in adults.
What causes a head injury?
There are many reasons of head injury in children. The most common injuries are sports injuries, falls, motor vehicle accidents (where the child is either riding as a passenger in the car or is struck as a pedestrian), or a result of child abuse.
The risk of head injury is high in the adolescent population and is twice more frequent in males than in females. Some of the studies by world’s best neurosurgeons show that head injuries are more common in the spring and summer months when children are usually very active in outdoor activities such as riding bicycles, in-line skating, or skateboarding.
The most common time associated with head injuries is late in the afternoon to early evening hours and on weekends. Although usually not life-threatening, head injury that occurs in competitive sports such as football, soccer, hockey, and basketball can result in concussion and post-concussive syndromes.
Lifelong considerations for a child with a head injury
The emphasis is to promote a secure playing environment for children and to stop head injuries from happening. The usage of seat belts while roaming around in the car and helmets (when worn correctly) for sports or adventure activities, such as in-line skating, bicycle riding and skateboarding might safeguard the head from having any kind of severe head injuries.
Children who undergo a severe head injury might lose part(s) of muscle, speech, vision, taste or hearing function conditional on the area of head injury. Long- or short-term alterations in personality or behavior might also happen.
These children need all-time medical and rehabilitative (physical, occupational, or speech therapy) management or brain surgery if required by top neurosurgeons. The extent of the child’s recovery depends on the type of brain injury and other medical problems that may be present.
It is important to focus on maximizing the child’s capabilities at home and in the community. Positive reinforcement will encourage the child to strengthen his or her self-esteem and promote independence.
Protecting young brains
While there are still many unknowns when it comes to head injury, the latest findings by some brain doctors are highlighting the importance of reducing head trauma in childhood.
Since children have weaker necks and torsos as compared to adults, less force is required to cause a head injury. For toddlers and preschoolers, the studies suggest higher parental supervision is crucial, as falls are the most general cause of head injury for young children.