Concussions

About half a million children go to the emergency room for concussion-related issues each year. It’s important to seek medical care if your child has a head injury. THINK Neurology for Kids provides compassionate care with minimal waiting times at their three convenient locations. With offices in The Woodlands, Katy, Sugar Land, and Austin, Texas, the expert practitioners provide onsite imaging studies and examinations. If your child has a head injury or concussion, call THINK Neurology for Kids or make an appointment online to ensure your child receives the best care possible.

What is a concussion?

A concussion can happen after injury or trauma to the head. Head trauma can cause the brain to move suddenly in the head, causing brain injury or bleeding. 

Children can experience concussions as a result of sports injuries, falling, or car accidents. Symptoms of a concussion include:

• Headache
• Pressure
• Confusion
• Memory loss
• Dizziness
• Vomiting
• Loss of balance

If your child has a concussion, they might not necessarily lose consciousness. If your child experiences any of these symptoms after a head injury, even without losing consciousness, they should still visit THINK Neurology for Kids for an evaluation.

How can concussions be prevented?

One of the most common reasons for concussion is sports injuries. If your child plays a sport, especially a contact sport like football, soccer, or hockey, it’s important to wear the appropriate headgear and work with trained coaches.

Athletes who experience head injury during a game or practice should be taken out of the field of play and monitored for several hours for concussion-related injury. 

Even though athletes may be eager to get back on the field, they should be monitored for signs of concussion to prevent re-injury.

To prevent concussions as a result of accidents, make sure your child is always wearing their seat belt in a vehicle. Often, concussions due to car accidents could be prevented through simple safety measures.

What symptoms may signal a young child has a concussion?

Young children may experience a fall or injury out of sight of the caregiver. Be alert for signs of concussion even in children who have not learned to talk or communicate. These can include:

• Bruises or cuts to the head
• Crying
• Listlessness
• Irritability
• Unusual loss of balance
• Lack of interest in normal activities 
• Dizziness

If you think your child may have experienced a concussion and is demonstrating these symptoms, contact a medical practitioner to evaluate your child for a potential concussion.

How are concussions diagnosed and treated?

THINK Neurology for Kids diagnoses concussions based on a neurological exam and imaging tests. The neurological exam includes questions about memory and concentration and test reflexes and coordination. 

Your child, if capable, tells their doctor all the details they remember about the accident or injury. Their doctor also asks you to describe the incident or symptoms that occurred afterward.

THINK Neurology for Kids provides ImPACT® (Immediate Post-Concussion Assessment and Cognitive Testing) to evaluate your child’s readiness to get back to normal life after a concussion. 

Since traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) like concussions can be further worsened by future impact, it’s important to make sure your child is fully healed before going out on the field again. 

Typically, concussions are treated through prescribed physical and mental rest. THINK Neurology for Kids works with you to develop a modified schedule for your child to help their brain heal. 

This could include a reduced school schedule and less screen time. They may also recommend medication to treat any accompanying headaches.

THINK Neurology for Kids provides expert care for both preventing and addressing concussions. Call today to schedule an appointment or book online.