Cranial Nerves

transient consciousness

in and out of consciousness

conscious confusion

disconnect between motor skills and body

LOC occurence

less than 10% of concussions

coup

hit by moving object to stationairy head

contracoup

moving head hits stationairy object

repetitive subconcussive forces

may be accumulative in nature

retrograde amnesia

memories prior to injury

anterograde amnesia

memories after injury

cervical pain

sharp or coupled with neurological symptoms

diffuse head pain

brain injury or concussion

localized head pain

skull fracture or bone related

transitory consciousness

seeing stars/flecks of light

weakness

malaise, muscles feel weak, limbs feel heavy, concussion symptom

persistent symptom

difficulty concentrating, fatigue, emotional instability, concussion symptom

cognitive impairment

confusion, forgetfulness, concussion symptom

malaise

limbs feel heavy and week like when having the flu

symptoms checklist

headache, nausea, difficulty balancing, fatigue, drowsiness, sleep disturbances, difficulty concentrating, “in a fog”, “slowed down”, sensitive to light, sadness, vomiting, sensitive to noise, nervousness, difficulty remembering, numbness, tingling, dizziness, neck pain, irritable, depression, blurred vision.

position of head inspection

lateral flexion and rotation, natural looking

cervical vertebrae inspection

spinous processes, malaignment

protective equipment inspection

scraps, dents, scratches, etc.

battles sign

bruising behind the ear, basilar skull fx s/s

raccoon’s sign

bruising around eyes, minutes to hours post injury

skull and scalp inspection

bleeding, edema/bumps, deformity

balance inspection

often starts before assessment cause we can see when they walk over to us

glazed/dazed

mental confusion, cerebral function disruption

nystagmus

end of lateral range eye starts shaking back and forth, involvuntary cyclical movement, pressure on motor nerves, inner ear disruption

aniscoria

unilaterally dilated pupil, cranial nerve 3, brain hemmorage s/s

PEARL

Pupils Equal And Reactive to Light

PERRLA

Pupils Equal Round Reactive to Light and Accomodation

PEARRRLA

Pupils Equal And Round, Regular, Reactive to Light and Accomodation

otorrhea

fluid out ears

rhinorrhea

fluid out nose

halo test

CSF check