This week Bobbi Conner talks with Dr. Taylor Lofton about strategies to help prevent head injuries in children. Dr. Lofton is a pediatrician and pediatric resident at MUSC Children’s Health.
TRANSCRIPT:
Conner: I'm Bobbi Conner for South Carolina Public Radio with Health Focus here at the radio studio for the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston. Head injuries in children are more common in the spring and summer months, when children are very active in a wide range of outdoor activities. Doctor Taylor Lofton is here to talk about strategies to help prevent head injuries in children. Doctor Lofton is a pediatrician and pediatric resident at MUSC Children's Health. Doctor Lofton, what are some of the most common causes of head injuries in children in the U.S.?
Dr. Lofton: So, it really is all dependent on age. So, whenever you're talking about infants and really young, school age children, the biggest thing is fall, whether that be falling off of something, and a fall from a height or just standing. When you get into preschool and older school age children, you think car accidents. And then when you get into your adolescence, you think assaults, sports injuries, as well as car accidents. Falls are the most common cause for all of the ages combined, but car accidents and sports injuries are the leading cause of serious injury.
Conner: If a child experiences a head injury, what are some of the signs and symptoms that may indicate the child needs immediate medical attention?
Dr. Lofton: Vomiting and headache are more of the common symptoms that you get following a head injury, and I feel like that could definitely warrant medical attention. But some serious symptoms that you should seek attention immediately are if you lose consciousness or if you pass out, if you start experiencing seizures, or if your child doesn't remember the circumstances around the injury or what happened, as well as something we call focal deficits. So, any weakness or numbness in any of your extremities, any changes to your pupils or your vision. All of those would be reasons to seek immediate medical attention after a head injury.
Conner: Any additional signs to look for as far as possible serious head injury when an infant is involved.. If
Dr. Lofton: And obviously infants can't tell us if their head is hurting or you know anything like that, or if their vision is blurry, so vomiting is still a big one. Lethargy, and if your child's not feeding as well would also be things to look out for in really young kids that can't tell you how they're feeling.
Conner: And when it comes to possible signs and symptoms of head injury, how quickly might those sorts of symptoms develop in a child?
Dr. Lofton: Some of those symptoms can develop immediately, such as loss of consciousness or passing out can happen right when the injury happens. Vomiting can also happen pretty quickly, as well as a headache. Things like seizures and changes in your mental status can come along several minutes to hours later.
Conner: Doctor Lofton, what are some of the main strategies then to help prevent head injuries at each age and stage of childhood?
Dr. Lofton: So it goes along with the common causes. So, infants and preschool ages- when we talk about falls, some things that you can do is if you have stairs at your home, install safety gates at the top and the bottom. Always keep one hand on your child on the changing table. Just keeping a really close eye on them, especially when they start walking and crawling and getting into things. Once you get to your preschool and younger school age kids, using age appropriate playgrounds that have more like soft landing surfaces like foam or rubber or mulch, not concrete is a big thing when they're playing on slides and monkey bars. Using a non-slip bathtub mat. Securing any big furniture items like bookshelves, dressers, TVs to prevent tipping over. When you get more into your school aged kids and your teens are starting to play sports and driving, you want to think more about wearing a well-fitted helmet. So, when you are playing any sports, when you're riding a bike, when you're riding ATVs, anything like that, wearing a helmet is going to be the biggest thing that you can do.
Conner: Doctor Lofton, thanks for this information about reducing risk of head injuries in kids.
Dr. Lofton: Thank you for having me.
Conner: From the radio studio for the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, I'm Bobbi Conner for South Carolina Public Radio.
Health Focus transcripts are intended to accurately represent the original audio version of the program; however, some discrepancies or inaccuracies may exist. The audio format serves as the official record of Health Focus programming.
