Forehead injury now 2 black eyes

[RI Mom]

Hi all,

My 7 year old son takes Warfarin. On Friday ( 5 days ago) he ran down the sidewalk, tripped, and hit his forehead. He came up crying and with the beginnings of a goose egg. I called the Cardio. who asked questions and then advised me to ice it and call if there were any behavior changes, etc... It was a pretty sizable hematoma (the size of a full walnut maybe) that now has drained into both eyes. Poor kid looks like a raccoon. I've taken him in to be checked by the Pediatrician who felt that I didn't need to get him x-rayed. I never thought about asking about changing his ACT and nobody mentioned it either. Should I have checked on that? Also, anybody with experience with this type of injury....can you tell me how long those black eyes might last? When he looked in the mirror last night he started crying and saying "I'm so ugly". It kind of broke my heart to see him like that.

Thanks for any insight you might offer!

 

[Cris N]

Oh, ouch! I suppose the dr thought that as long as he had a 'goose egg' he was probably out of danger of any blood swelling in the skull. So, that's probably a good thing.

I see you test him yourself and my thinking is that as long as he's in range no change in dosage is necessary. What's done is done and you certainly don't want to put him at risk of clots.

Wish I had some good advice for the black eyes- maybe some useful tips here - http://www.getridofthings.com/get-rid-of-black-eye.htm

Since he's 5 days out now, looks like folks suggest warm compresses to help clear it up.

Poor little guy - I feel so bad for him. Just happy it wasn't a more serious injury.

 

[ALCapshaw2]

I had a large hematoma the size and shape of a deck of cards on my shin from striking a tree (60 lb 'puppy', on a leash, saw a squirrel, you can guess the rest...).

I'm thinking it took 6 weeks to finally heal and was Very Uncomfortable going from horizontal to vertical and taking that first step every morning. Had to rise 'S-L-O-W-L-Y' as I gradually put more weight on that foot/leg. Ankle, foot, toes turned several different colors at different times as it 'drained'. NOT a fun time!

Looks like you will be 'comforting' your son for a while.
Hope it is not 'uncomfortable' to boot.

'AL C'

 

[Freddie]

When I had my black eye, I was in range - in fact I headed straight to the lab after it happened. There was no change in dosage and I kept ice on my eye for about 4 days. The blackness started to subsided about 2 weeks later.

One thing you may want watch out for, and that's a concussion. Headaches, sore neck and maybe some dizziness could be signs of a concussion. Mine lasted 2 weeks and a job.

 

[catwoman]

Theresa:

I had a black eye several years ago that started when I had a bout of bronchitis. I coughed and broke a blood vessel between the corner of my left eye & my nose. This was around 1-2 p.m. on a Sunday and I was out of town. By the time I got home, the blood had spread. By morning, it looked like someone had decked me.

It took about 4-6 weeks for the blood to be absorbed and coloring to return to normal.

In the meantime, I wore sunglasses for several weeks.

 

[Bill B]

One small thing in addition. I fell like this when I was 3 years old. I was not on Coumadin, but I got 2 black eyes. What no one appreciated at the time is that I broke my nose too. Eight years later when I got a nose bleed that would stop and my dad took me to the ER, the ER doc said, "You broke your nose years ago and have a deviated septum". It was then I remembered the fall when I was 3. Apparently the damage to my nose was not externally visible. I have suffered all my life from this actually terribly deviated septum, being unable most of the time to breath through my nose. I apparently never complained and no one noticed.

I was going to get my deviated septum fixed last year, when during the pre-op exam another problem was inadvertently discovered - a murmur that proved to be a rather deteriorated BAV. That took precedence and I just had fixed 2 weeks ago. Someday I'll get back to that nose job.

I trust Indrees hit just his forehead, but I thought I should mention my personal saga with a similar fall.

 

[AgilityDog]

My experience with big bruises & hematomas (dog induced, also) is 6 weeks to heal.

Sorry kiddo.

But no changes in dosing. Once the blood is seeped into the tissue, it's there until reabsorbed. The seeping only takes a few hours. Or cases of dog collision, 20 minutes. Ow! The best you can do is immediate icing.

It would take 3 days for a dosage change to show up much, by which time the bleeding has long since stopped, even though it takes 2-3 days for the full glory of the bruise to appear.

 

[westie]

same

same

.
sounds like your boy is a healthy normal kid. he sure took a real big hit; maybe the result would have been much the same even if he was not on warfarin?

 

[Herb M]

Make sure he does not have language problems or severe headaches. That would indicate that there was bleeding into the skull.

Also be prepared for someone in school to report that you have physically abused your child.

 

[ALCapshaw2]

There was a thread some time ago that AL Lodwick (certified AntiCoagulation Care Provider / retired Coumadin Clinic Director who used to monitor the A/C Forum) weighed in on. The usual guidelines for Head Injuries are to go to the ER to make sure there is no internal bleeding.

That's were the controversy begins. Small bleeds may not be detected right away and it may be a day or two or three for them to become apparent.

The concensious is to be aware of ANY possible signs of a brain injury such as slurred speech, unsymetrical muscle control issues in the face, arms, legs, etc. If *anything suspicious* appears, go the ER ASAP.

'AL Capshaw'

 

[Herb M]

In my case the symtons did not show up for 2 or 3 days. I fell and injured my forhead jus above the eye. It too a few stitches to stop the bleeding. I felt no symtoms for a few days.

When I went to have my stiches removed, I explained the symtoms to the ER physician. He immediately ordered a catscan. I did have bleeding into my skull. I was kept in the hospital several days and had daily scans until the hematoma no longer existed and my headache disappeared.

 

[RI Mom]

thank you all for your replies. I have watched him closely for any signs of neurological symptoms and fortunately have not seen any. We did, however, take him for an x-ray and back to the Pediatrician for a look after the school nurse called me to say that she had noticed a change in the look of the hematoma and to tell me that he had come to the clinic complaining that it was hurting. The bump is still huge and the blood is spreading down his little face to give him black cheeks now too. He looks awful but the Dr. has assured me that he doesn't have internal bleeding nor does he have a fractured skull.

thanks Al for the reminder that school officials sometimes look at these things and think the worst. I also thought of that and alerted the teacher and school nurse (who is well-informed about my son's medical history) before he went back to school so that they would be prepared. No problems so far thankfully. I am a school counselor at another school and a mandatory reporter of child abuse/neglect so I do know the fine line that educators must walk in this area. It seems best to head it off by informing school authorities before they see the child and start deciding for themselves what occurred. They know what meds. he takes and that bruising is to be expected.

Sometimes I wonder if I need to bubble-wrap him completely when I send him out into the world...LOL

Theresa

 

[RI Mom]

Sorry Al I meant to say Thanks Herb for the comment on school officials and to thank you for the signs of neurological damage. Thank you all!!