4 year old concussion

[exhaustedpigeon101]

This morning my child's dad was carrying our four year old down the stairs when he slipped 2/3 stairs up, and four year old fell backwards and hit his head on the hard floor.

999 was called as he was completely inconsolable, head was hurting a huge amount and starting talking nonsense.

He was taken into a&e and monitored where he was sick 3 times. Extremely sleepy and drowsy, but no confusion etc.

Sent home. We've just got home and he's been sick again (he was given anti sickness at the hospital about 3 hours ago)

How long is this sickness likely to last? He's asleep again now, and isn't waking up as such to be sick. Just sick when he's awake.

I'm obviously still worried about him, and have never dealt with concussion prior so any advice would be helpful. Thank you

Oh also to mention that his temp was at 35.5 in the hospital although it seems more normal now. His hands and feet still freezing though poor boy

Did they give you a leaflet on managing a head injury with a contact number in it? I would be calling for advice, especially if he wasn't scanned.

My son had a concussion which caused sickness (3-4 times at home and in hospital) and then he was sick one time when he got back from hospital. I called them and they said if he continued to be sick to go back in.
If you can contact them again I would definitely suggest speaking to them and seeing what they advise. I was told they are always happy to speak/see us. I'm so sorry for you and your son, it is a frightening thing

If he continues to be sick I’d go back in.

Hello my DS hit his head when he was 3 and vomited and turned v pale. He was seen at hospital but was fine by then and sent home, about 3 hours later the vomiting restarted so we went back to A+E (as advised) and he was kept overnight for monitoring until the vomiting stopped. They just checked his neuro vitals every 2 hrs, pupil size, alertness speech etc. So all in all he vomited fairly often between about 2pm (when the fall happened) and 2am and we were sent home at 5am. It was treated as a suspected concussion but they didn't scan him or anything, a lovely doctor showed me the best practice guidelines for suspected concussion and scanning wasn't indicated in his case.
So it can be normal for the puking to go on 12 hours. Our boy wasn't technically drowsy but he was exhausted and pale from all the sickness, they told us to keep him sipping sugary drinks like apple juice.
Oh BTW we let him watch tv the first time we brought him home from hospital, as he wanted to rest and we thought a treat after his fall, but it's actually not recommended in concussion and I wondered if that's what brought his vomiting back on.
He was absolutely fine 24h later, just tired from his night on a corridor, we were advised 2 weeks of no rough play or sport but that was it really!
Hope your LO has a speedy recovery it's a scary time.

@Ratfinkstinkypink no we haven't got one. They said they didn't want to do a CT because of the radiation. He also had an xray when he was up there because he has an abrasion on his shoulder and back because of the fall - I wasn't concerned about this because he didn't seem to be in pain from it and could move. So I'm assuming the combination of radiation from xray and CT they want to avoid

@r0ck thank you, I do actually have a number for the hospital from previous trips with my daughter etc so I could call them or try 111 if he's sick again

@AmberBeaker he's come home and gone straight to bed / sleep. He doesn't want to watch tv which is unlike him, hasn't eaten and doesn't want too and only small sips of water after being sick. I hope he feels better too. I'm just sat here watching him like a hawk

😭

Thank you all for your replies and well wishes. I'll keep a close eye on him for the next few hours, wake him soon and see if the sickness persists

They did say that anti sickness wouldn't work on sickness to do with a brain issue, and it did seem to work until we got home so I'm unsure if it's worn off or just isn't working.

He seems fairly coherent when he's awake which is a good sign though

Bless you definitely call if any concerns, in my experience they’d rather you do to be on the safe side. My son couldn’t watch tv or tolerate a car ride for a good few days without feeling iffy but it did ease up and they said he won’t have any lasting effects as long as he doesn’t make a habit of it! I still remember the shock of how suddenly he seemed unwell and the worry so sending you a hug.

@r0ck thank you. He's currently on the way back up to the hospital as he's vomited 4 times now since he left the hospital. IMO the antisickness should still have been working up until around now (I am not a doctor of course but he must have been sick about 2hrs after taking it and it takes about 30-1hr to kick in)
I've told his dad to make sure he demands a head CT this time - although I think they'll probably do it now anyway
I'm so worried about him he's definitely not himself

I hope he's okay poor little love, it sounds like he's in the right place to be kept an eye on. Do let us know how he is (if/when you've got time).

Update: they've seen the doctor who thinks that he might have a sickness bug as well as a concussion (🙄)

They're at a bit of a loss because he's showing no major signs of a brain injury, and no other signs of a sickness bug other than the vomiting so they're not sure.
But, they are reluctantly going to do a head CT to rule out anything serious. Which I'm relieved about.

He's still being sick, and still very sleepy, but they have a private room and they're being dealt with quickly now so hopefully some answers soon

Sounds like he's in the right place where he can be monitored and you can get some peace of mind.
Tbh this sounds exactly like my boy. He was vomiting so much it seemed like a bug but then had none of the other signs of a serious brain injury that would have matched that level of vomiting if that makes sense?? So the docs were a bit stumped too.
Weirdly that time I myself got vomiting and diarrhea about 4 days after his concussion so it did cross my mind that maybe he'd had a bug at the same time, odd coincidence but possible I guess!
Hope he's on the mend soon

I took my vomitting toddler to A&E once after a heavy injury and they claimed he probably had a stomach bug. Pretty sure he didn't and it was from shock (even though he wasn't concussed) and possibly that he had swallowed a lot of mucus whilst crying for a long period. Hope your child feels better soon and gets the all clear.

Poor darling! I'm astounded/appalled that they sent him home in the first place! Vomiting and talking nonsense? That's a child I'd want a VERY close eye on! Very best wishes for a speedy recover. His dad must feel terrible too, poor chap.

Thank you all.

The head CT has confirmed that he has a skull fracture and a small bleed on the brain. Kings hospital in London are now reviewing his scans to decide if they want him up there, or to stay at the local hospital. And will advise on a plan whether that's monitoring or anything more

I'm so glad we listened to our instincts as parents.

His poor dad is absolutely devastated and is obviously blaming himself.

I'm sure our little one will be okay, but of course a very worrying time

Oh my OP, that's really scary!! Thank goodness you pushed for the CT scan (not that you should have had to....stories like this where medical professionals have 'reluctantly' given important medical treatment only due to people fighting for it make me so mad!) I really hope your little boy makes a full and speedy recovery.

Oh gosh you poor things! Hope he recovers quickly! Your poor husband too :(

Poor you and your husband and your little boy. I'm sure he will be fine kids are so incredibly resilient. Well done for keeping bringing him back, its always hard when you're made to feel youre over-reacting but you trusted your gut. Wishing him a really quick recovery x

Oh OP I'm so sorry to hear this, well done for following your instincts and getting him to where he needed to be best taken care of. I hope he has a quick recovery, and that your husband is okay too.

@ChitterChatter1987 I try not to be too angry as I know they are stretched but you're right, we shouldn't have to fight for these things.

Thank you all, he's asleep now in the hospital being looked after. Still waiting for kings to get back to us, but at least he's getting some rest.

We are certain our 5yr old had concussion after a head clash at school. the vomiting started at 10pm, was every 20 mins until 3am. It was horrendous

Sorry I see he has a fracture..poor soul. I wish him a speedy recovery and I hope your husband isn't hard on himself. It's so easy done!

I don't want to read and run. I hope your son is okay, and your husbands okay too. It's was a complete accident the paths are completely black ice up my way I slid down some stairs the other day and was hanging on the banister for dear life cause I had the dogs lead in the other hand. Sending your son virtual hugs xxxx