What to do if the child falls - the baby fell

Children, even the smallest - newborns, are surprisingly mobile. It is only for a minute to reach for the bottle or just to distract yourself, as your child slips out from the changing table, falls and strikes the head. Mother Nature wisely provided crumb with protective devices from "flights": an abundance of cerebrospinal fluid, which absorbs, "softens" the blows, the roots of the skull - cartilaginous tissues that can "spring" when struck. However, the weight of the head in crumbs relative to the body is significantly increased, so the parietal region is primarily injured. The nape and forehead experience bruises much less often.

What should I do if a child falls? First, do not panic! Do not look guilty! It is better to focus on the baby and find out as quickly as possible: what is the severity of the injury.

Pediatricians are advised to inspect the bruised place and watch the child: at the first sign of a bruise or concussion, it is urgent to call a doctor!

Varieties of head injuries:

1. Light superficial damage. If you found a small abrasion or a bump, there was only a bruise of the soft tissues of the head of your child( not the brain!), It is necessary to treat the wound or apply a cold to the bump( any food from the freezer wrapped in a towel).The child, crying for 15-20 minutes of his "misfortune", calms down and continues to play, as if nothing had happened. In case there are no more symptoms, then you can not go to the doctor.
2. Concussion of the brain. In this case, the bruise is much more serious: a short-term loss of consciousness( fainting) may occur, vomiting may begin( in children under 3 months of age - abundant, multiple), the skin starts to turn pale and become covered with a cold sweat. The baby suffers from lethargy, drowsiness, loses appetite, refuses food. Older children can complain of tinnitus and headaches.
3. Contusion of the brain. Even more serious damage, after getting injured, consciousness can be disconnected for a long time( sometimes the kid can not recover more than an hour).Especially severe cases are accompanied by a violation of breathing and heart rhythm.
4. Fracture of skull base. A terrible trauma, accompanied by a general severe condition of the baby, may bleed blood or liquor( light liquid) from the ear or spout. Around the eyes are formed "glasses" of bruises. Parents should take into account that the symptoms of fractures of the skull bones are not immediately apparent, but after a few hours.

Tips

• If a blow does not cause damage to the bones of the skull, then apply a moist cool cloth or ice wrapped in a diaper( towel) to the site of the injury. This will anesthetize, remove swelling and stop bleeding.
• If the wound is more than a scratch, stop the bleeding with a pair of tight tampons from sterile gauze or tissue. After 15 minutes all should turn out, if the blood continues to flow, urgently call the doctor!
• The child should be provided in any case with peace, but he can not fall asleep for an hour, since symptoms of a serious condition can be missed. You'll have to wake a child even at night. If motor coordination is impaired, the older child is not able to answer a simple question or the vomiting process continues, urgently call the children's "Aibolit"!

• Check the size of the pupils in the child: if it is unequal, the brain is seriously damaged. Even if the baby falls asleep, and you have suspicions of a dangerous injury, call the pediatrician!
• If the baby hits his head and fainted, and you called for an ambulance, turn the crumb on its side so that unexpectedly vomit will not be in the airways.
• If your child falls from a height on his head or on his back, in this case he could suffer, except the brain, the spine. Affected baby must be turned in this situation extremely delicately, the head and trunk should be on the same axis. This can avoid additional damage.
• The child in connection with the trauma needs constant care, it should be monitored closely during the week. On the first day after the accident, a small man does not aspire to activity, and then the fidget begins to show his character. You can not walk with the baby, the computer and the TV are taboo. We take a sick leave, we arrange peace for the crumb, we protect from visual loads( especially children of one and a half to two years old): telecasts, cartoons. We read books no more than 30 minutes a day, we play for a short time on the floor with "locomotives" or typewriters, we build from Legos cubes or designers with large details. Draw with pencils, markers and pens strain the optic nerve. We use baby's applications from colored paper. We sculpt from clay or plasticine, we color figurines from gypsum. Older children can pick cereals, weave macrame, knit or beadwork.
• What to look for while playing? Does your child use both hands in the game or more often acts alone? When the baby draws, the second non-working upper limb does not slip under the table? Is there no noticeable hand trembling? Did not appear strabismus? Is the kid answering the questions adequately, is it not confused in words, verbs, or names? Has his memory worsened?

To which doctor to contact

Even if, in your opinion, the baby does not face any danger after falling from a small height, he ceases to cry, is relatively calm himself, do not be lazy, contact the child's specialists immediately:traumatologist, neurologist and neurosurgeon. An uncompensated home call will take you and the baby to the hospital. You can also go to the surgical department of the children's hospital, where consultation of the above doctors is available. If the pathology is not confirmed by them, then you will calmly return home to take care of the child in the family circle.

Procrastination of a visit to specialist doctors is a risky late diagnosis of trauma, worsening of the baby's condition, and the appearance of coma. It may be necessary in this case for treatment in the intensive care unit or for a complex operation. Because of late treatment to doctors, the risk of death, the occurrence of various complications increases, the recovery period lasts much longer and its result is worse, up to the appointment of a disability.

First aid for fractures

Even a not very severe fall can provoke acute pain in the pen or leg in children. Because of her, babies are often capricious and do not want to move a limb with a limb, as the pain at such an attempt dramatically increases.

Symptoms of fracture: the color of the skin around the injured area and the mobility of the fingers. If large blood vessels or nerve endings are damaged, the skin will be cyanotic or "marbled".Having a serious hand injury will show no ripple on the arm. Bleeding wounds or injuries that threaten the vital functions of the child's body are indications for urgent hospitalization in a traumatological or surgical department. There will be stitches on the deep wound.

Children's bone tissue is different from the adult by its fragility and it breaks faster.

With a fracture to reduce pain and reduce the risk of bone displacement, fixation of the injured limb will help. Any tool at hand: a plank, a stick or a ruler suitable for a tire. A broken bone of the hand can also be suspended on a bandage from a kerchief.

An unnaturally turned limb is not allowed to be leveled: you can damage the bones and soft tissues even more, and cause also painful shock.

In order to reduce pain, the child is advised to give an anesthetic, but any liquid and food are contraindicated, since in the hospital the child may need anesthesia.

After first aid, immediately deliver the child to a traumatology or surgery.

Precautions

How to save "flyers" from possible injuries? Of course, it is better to take preventive measures and give maximum attention to the kids.

• A child of monthly age, lying on the tummy, with pleasure pushes away from the back of the sofa, the bed, the side of the changing table, which can lead to a fall. We must adhere to the crumb without leaving it for a second.
• Any attempt to sit, stand up or crawl can also end sadly: falling out of a stroller, a highchair( without fastening).
• Going to the side of the baby, put it in advance in the crib or playpen.
• In the stroller and chair of the child must be fastened.
• Near the stairs in the house must be mounted guardrail to protect, so that your child does not start to master it, climbing up, immediately fall.

• Insecure invention for children - "walkers".The child in them can strongly push off, hitting any object, roll over them or fall off the ladder.
• In the "jumper" dangerous unpredictability of the trajectory of the jump: for example, a child can hit against the wall.
• Babe can also fall due to slippery uncomfortable shoes. Do not wear too much shoes on your toddler, and slip neutralize rubber slips with rubber patches.
• If the child began to crawl, we urgently re-equip the apartment: we cover hard surfaces with carpets or paths, hide the corners behind the nozzles. Floors covered with tiles are covered with non-slip rubber mats. In travmoopasnyh rooms: in the kitchen, in the toilet and in the bathroom, the child does not leave a single second!

Children who have never fallen down do not exist in nature. But the task of adults is to provide them with maximum protection.