Editing Head injury (section)

=== Symptoms in children ===
Symptoms observed in children include changes in eating habits, persistent irritability or sadness, changes in attention, disrupted sleeping habits, or loss of interest in toys.<ref name=":5" />

Presentation varies according to the injury. Some patients with head trauma stabilize and other patients deteriorate. A patient may present with or without [[Functional neurological deficit|neurological deficit]]. Patients with concussion may have a history of seconds to minutes unconsciousness, then normal arousal. Disturbance of vision and equilibrium may also occur. Common symptoms of head injury include [[coma]], confusion, drowsiness, personality change, [[seizure]]s, [[nausea]] and [[vomiting]], [[headache]] and a [[lucid interval]], during which a patient appears conscious only to deteriorate later.<ref name=":4">{{cite journal|last1=Atianzar|first1=Kimberly|last2=Casterella|first2=Peter|last3=Zhang|first3=Ming|last4=Sharma|first4=Rahul|last5=Gafoor|first5=Sameer|date=2017|title=Update on the Management of Patent Foramen Ovale in 2017: Indication for Closure and Literature Review|journal=US Cardiology Review|volume=11|issue=2|pages=75|doi=10.15420/usc.2017:18:1|issn=1758-3896|name-list-style=vanc|doi-access=free}}</ref>

Symptoms of skull fracture can include:
* leaking [[cerebrospinal fluid]] (a clear fluid drainage from [[Human nose|nose]], [[Human mouth|mouth]] or [[ear]]) is strongly indicative of [[basilar skull fracture]] and the tearing of sheaths surrounding the brain, which can lead to secondary brain [[infection]].
* visible deformity or depression in the head or face; for example a sunken eye can indicate a [[maxilla]]r fracture
* an eye that cannot move or is deviated to one side can indicate that a broken facial bone is pinching a [[nerve]] that innervates eye muscles
* [[wound]]s or bruises on the scalp or face.
* [[Basilar skull fracture]]s, those that occur at the base of the [[Human skull|skull]], are associated with [[Battle's sign]], a [[Subcutaneous tissue|subcutaneous]] bleed over the [[mastoid]], [[hemotympanum]], and [[cerebrospinal fluid]] [[rhinorrhea]] and [[otorrhea]].

Because brain injuries can be life-threatening, even people with apparently slight injuries, with no noticeable signs or complaints, require close observation; They have a chance for severe symptoms later on. The caretakers of those patients with mild trauma who are released from the hospital are frequently advised to rouse the patient several times during the next 12 to 24 hours to assess for worsening symptoms.

The [[Glasgow Coma Scale]] (GCS) is a tool for measuring the degree of unconsciousness and is thus a useful tool for determining the severity of the injury. The [[Pediatric Glasgow Coma Scale]] is used in young children. The widely used PECARN Pediatric Head Injury/Trauma Algorithm helps physicians weigh risk-benefit of imaging in a clinical setting given multiple factors about the patient—including mechanism/location of the injury, age of the patient, and GCS score.<ref name="pmid19758692">{{cite journal|author1-link=Nathan Kuppermann | vauthors = Kuppermann N, Holmes JF, Dayan PS, Hoyle JD, Atabaki SM, Holubkov R, Nadel FM, Monroe D, Stanley RM, Borgialli DA, Badawy MK, Schunk JE, Quayle KS, Mahajan P, Lichenstein R, Lillis KA, Tunik MG, Jacobs ES, Callahan JM, Gorelick MH, Glass TF, Lee LK, Bachman MC, Cooper A, Powell EC, Gerardi MJ, Melville KA, Muizelaar JP, Wisner DH, Zuspan SJ, Dean JM, Wootton-Gorges SL | display-authors = 6 | title = Identification of children at very low risk of clinically-important brain injuries after head trauma: a prospective cohort study | journal = Lancet | volume = 374 | issue = 9696 | pages = 1160–70 | date = October 2009 | pmid = 19758692 | doi = 10.1016/S0140-6736(09)61558-0 | s2cid = 43075627 }}</ref>