|  | Conditions Treatments | Wounds Injuries

Waking Up After a Head Injury

Unconscious patients with head injuries could be in grave danger, but that doesn't mean they must be woken up. At worst, abnormal sleep acts as a symptom of a severe injury.

  1. Misconceptions

    • According to Dr. Paul Auerbach, sleeping after a head injury does not worsen the injured person's condition. Before MRI and CT scans, doctors had no easy way of determining whether or not the brain suffered damage. Neurological examinations required the patient to be awake. This caused people to believe that sleeping after a head injury was dangerous, but sleep has no impact on the progression of injuries.

    Warning

    • Dr. Sara Schutzman states that loss of consciousness can indicate a head injury. Loss of consciousness for any time period could be indicative of a grade three concussion. When an injured person passes out and cannot be woken up, paramedics should be called immediately.

    Expert Insight

    • According to Dr. Ruth Hutchinson and Dr. Terry Hutchinson, if a patient with a head injury lapses into prolonged unconsciousness, no one can determine how much time will pass before that person wakes up. Waking up after a severe head injury requires a process that can last several hours to several years.

Wounds Injuries - Related Articles