What should I do if my child has a head injury but does not lose consciousness?

For anything more than a light bump on the head, you should call your child's doctor. Your child's doctor will want to know when and how the injury happened and how your child is feeling.

If your child is alert and responds to you, the head injury is mild and usually no tests or X-rays are needed. Your child may cry from pain or fright, but this should last no longer than 10 minutes. You may need to apply a cold compress for 20 minutes to help the swelling go down and then watch your child closely for a time.

What if there are changes in my child's condition?

If there are any changes in your child's condition, call your child's doctor right away. You may need to bring your child to the doctor's office or directly to the hospital.

Signs of a more serious head injury include:

• A constant headache, particularly one that gets worse

• Slurred speech or confusion

• Dizziness that does not go away or happens repeatedly

• Extreme irritability or other abnormal behavior

• Vomiting more than 2 or 3 times

• Stumbling or difficulty walking

• Oozing blood or watery fluid from the nose or ears

• Difficulty waking up or excessive sleepiness

• Unequal size of the pupils (the dark center part of the eyes)

• Double vision or blurry vision

• Unusual paleness that lasts for more than an hour

• Convulsions (seizures)

• Difficulty recognizing familiar people

• Weakness of arms or legs

• Persistent ringing in the ears

What if my child loses consciousness?

If your child loses consciousness, call 911. Special tests may need to be done as soon as possible to find out how serious the injury is. If the test results are normal, you will need to watch your child closely for a time. Your child's doctor will let you know if this can be done at home or in the hospital.

If you take your child home and their condition changes, call your child's doctor right away because more care may be needed.