What To Do If Your Toddler Hits Their Head
Your little one is curious! That’s great! We want toddlers to safely explore the world around them. However, as they learn to walk and use their bodies in new ways a tumble here or there can occur. While most of the time these don’t lead to major injuries, a bump on the head can be a major concern. In fact, younger children may be at higher risk due to their developing bodies and active exploration.
An infant or toddler’s head is proportionally larger compared to their body, making them top-heavy. As a result, they are more likely than older children to fall headfirst, especially as they learn to walk, run, and explore their surroundings.
Additionally, their neck muscles are still developing, providing less control over head movement. To make matters more concerning, a baby’s skull is softer and thinner than that of an older child. While head-first falls increase the risk of a concussion, any activity where an infant or toddler experiences a strong impact to their head or body can potentially cause one.
So, how do you know when a bump or bruise is cause for concern? Because your child may not have the language skills to express how they’re feeling or what happened, it can be difficult to identify a concussion in young children. Here’s what parents need to know.
How Concussions Are Diagnosed
Your child’s doctor will get a detailed description of what happened, as well as your child’s past medical history. They will also want to know how your child has been acting since the injury. For toddlers and infants not yet speaking, a parent or caregiver’s report is often the most useful tool to diagnose a concussion in this age group since they often are not old enough to speak for themselves. For older children, a doctor might test their memory, thinking, mood, behavior, vision, and concentration. They will also test your child’s balance, coordination, muscle strength, reflexes, and sensation.
It’s up to the doctor’s discretion on whether imaging tests of the brain or head, such as computerized tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are needed..
When to Take Your Child to Be Seen
A little bump or fall is likely not cause for concern. In many cases we truly believe that your judgement will kick in if your child is truly in need of being seen for a head injury. However, make sure to take your child to the emergency department right away if they have been hit in the head or body and have any of these symptoms:
- Will not stop crying and cannot be consoled (infants)
- Will not nurse or eat (infants)
- Repeated vomiting or nausea
- Slurred speech
- Looks very drowsy or cannot be awakened.
- One pupil (the black part in the middle of the eye) is larger than the other
- Convulsions or seizures
- Unusual behavior or not acting like their usual self
- Loss of consciousness (even a brief loss of consciousness should be taken seriously; the child should be carefully monitored)
Of course, if you’re concerned we’re concerned! It’s always better to be on the safe side and give us a call when in doubt.
When a bump, hit, or other trauma to the head is most concerning to us is when it could be considered a type of traumatic brain injury (TBI). TBIs occur when a direct or indirect impact affects the head, leading to potential damage to the brain. These injuries can range from minor bumps and bruises to more severe conditions like concussions, skull fractures, and significant brain trauma. While some TBIs can result in lasting effects, the good news is that most children recover fully without experiencing long-term complications.
How to Treat The Injury
Depending on the severity of the injury, treatment varies. For most bumps and concussions, the primary treatment will be taking a step back from “normal” activities to provide their brain and body with more rest.
For example, your child might need to stay home from daycare or preschool for a couple of days. It’s also important to limit their exposure to busy or noisy environments until they start acting more like themselves. Playtime should be reduced as well, allowing for frequent breaks to avoid overexertion.
However, this doesn’t mean your child needs to stop all activity. Research from the American Academy of Pediatrics shows that complete rest isn’t necessary and may not be helpful. Encourage gentle play, but keep it shorter and more flexible, allowing your child to rest as needed. Be attentive to any new or worsening symptoms during their recovery.
For more serious TBIs, including those resulting in internal bleeding or other more notable trauma to the brain, surgery may be needed as well as pain medication, and sometimes occupational and behavioral rehabilitation. However, this is in the case of a serious injury – most likely not your bump or bruise from a typical toddler trip! This sort of treatment generally comes with an injury where you are not questioning whether or not your child needs to be seen for their injury, but one where you would know something truly traumatic has occurred.
For questions or any other concerns, Augusta Pediatrics can be reached at (706) 868-0389. The information on this site is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. All content, including text, graphics, images and information, contained on or available through this web site is for general information purposes only.
For more reading and resources:
https://www.cincinnatichildrens.org/health/t/traumatic-brain-injury
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