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What Causes A Lump Behind The Ear Along With Fever Post Head Injury?
Question: My 6 year old grandson fell off a chair on a hard wood floor and hit his head causing a lump behind his Left ear.
He didn't lose consciousness but has a goose egg behind his ear and developed a fever of 101 and does have a history of von Willebrand's disease (borderline ) his 3 year old cousin has von Willebrand's and is under treatment. My grandson was given a cold cucumber to put on the lump for an hour after the injury.
He did not lose consciousness, & does not have confusions, pupillary changes, vomiting, or drowsiness .
He and the parents live in a rural area of XXXXXX.
Should he be seen by a physician? I am a retired Pediatric nurse but do not live on the same island as my grandson and his parents.
thank you.
My email address is : YYYY@YYYY.com
I did not realize you were asking info on the "Patient profile" and gave my age and gender rather than my grandson's...please make the appropriate adjustments.
My grandson who is 6 years is the patient and he is male.
thank you
He didn't lose consciousness but has a goose egg behind his ear and developed a fever of 101 and does have a history of von Willebrand's disease (borderline ) his 3 year old cousin has von Willebrand's and is under treatment. My grandson was given a cold cucumber to put on the lump for an hour after the injury.
He did not lose consciousness, & does not have confusions, pupillary changes, vomiting, or drowsiness .
He and the parents live in a rural area of XXXXXX.
Should he be seen by a physician? I am a retired Pediatric nurse but do not live on the same island as my grandson and his parents.
thank you.
My email address is : YYYY@YYYY.com
I did not realize you were asking info on the "Patient profile" and gave my age and gender rather than my grandson's...please make the appropriate adjustments.
My grandson who is 6 years is the patient and he is male.
thank you
Brief Answer:
My recommendation is that your son be seen by a physician
Detailed Answer:
Good morning. For a 6 year to fall from a chair and strike his head on a wooden floor causing a visible and painful swelling suggests to me that whether or not he lost consciousness the brain suffered a major jarring effect. Whether the force was sufficient to cause a concussion can only be determined by examining the child by a physician....preferably a pediatric neurologst...but if you have none available in your area then, at least a pediatrician. If he's developed a fever and has Von Willebrand's then, all the more reason to have him looked at sooner rather later and while the acute measure of placing something cold over the swelling is a good first aid move it doesn't take away the possibility of having suffered a concussion from the fall and that should be established.
Again, current concepts and definitions of Traumatic Brain Injury do not require there be any loss of consciousness, nausea, vomiting, changes in pupillary size, ataxia, dysequilibrium, etc....though any of those things as well as headaches could certainly develop in the acute phase following the injury.
Nevertheless, and notwithstanding the fact that the child and parents live in what sound to be a bit of an isolated area of the countryside I believe it to be in the child's best interest to be reviewed by a doctor with some neurological training to look for subtle signs as well as elements of history from either the child or a witness to the fall that could verify or refute the diagnosis of TBI.
If I've provided useful and helpful information to your questions could you do me a huge favor by CLOSING THE QUERY and be sure to include some fine words of feedback along with a 5 STAR rating? Again, many thanks for submitting your inquiry and please let me know how things turn out.
Do not forget to contact me in the future at: www.bit.ly/drdariushsaghafi for additional questions, comments, or concerns having to do with this topic or others.
This query has utilized a total of 15 minutes of professional time in research, review, and synthesis for the purpose of formulating a return statement.
My recommendation is that your son be seen by a physician
Detailed Answer:
Good morning. For a 6 year to fall from a chair and strike his head on a wooden floor causing a visible and painful swelling suggests to me that whether or not he lost consciousness the brain suffered a major jarring effect. Whether the force was sufficient to cause a concussion can only be determined by examining the child by a physician....preferably a pediatric neurologst...but if you have none available in your area then, at least a pediatrician. If he's developed a fever and has Von Willebrand's then, all the more reason to have him looked at sooner rather later and while the acute measure of placing something cold over the swelling is a good first aid move it doesn't take away the possibility of having suffered a concussion from the fall and that should be established.
Again, current concepts and definitions of Traumatic Brain Injury do not require there be any loss of consciousness, nausea, vomiting, changes in pupillary size, ataxia, dysequilibrium, etc....though any of those things as well as headaches could certainly develop in the acute phase following the injury.
Nevertheless, and notwithstanding the fact that the child and parents live in what sound to be a bit of an isolated area of the countryside I believe it to be in the child's best interest to be reviewed by a doctor with some neurological training to look for subtle signs as well as elements of history from either the child or a witness to the fall that could verify or refute the diagnosis of TBI.
If I've provided useful and helpful information to your questions could you do me a huge favor by CLOSING THE QUERY and be sure to include some fine words of feedback along with a 5 STAR rating? Again, many thanks for submitting your inquiry and please let me know how things turn out.
Do not forget to contact me in the future at: www.bit.ly/drdariushsaghafi for additional questions, comments, or concerns having to do with this topic or others.
This query has utilized a total of 15 minutes of professional time in research, review, and synthesis for the purpose of formulating a return statement.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
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