Brain injury in children

An acquired brain injury means a child was not born with their injury. It's the result of an accident or illness after birth. There are 2 types of acquired brain injury – traumatic brain injury and non-traumatic brain injury.

Traumatic brain injury

A traumatic brain injury is the most common type of brain injury and is generally the result of an impact or jolt to the head that is strong enough to injure the brain. The most frequent cause in children and young people include:

• falls
• car or bike accidents
• sports injuries.

Non-traumatic brain injury

A non-traumatic brain injury is the result of something that happens inside the body, such as an illness that affects the brain. Examples include:

• meningitis or another brain infection
• interrupted blood flow to the brain (such as in a stroke)
• a growth (tumour) in the brain.

Your child may experience a variety of symptoms or difficulties following a brain injury – it depends on the type of injury and how serious the injury is. 

Mild traumatic brain injury

Most children who have a mild traumatic brain injury (also called a concussion) get better within 2 to 3 weeks, although they can take a little longer.

Symptoms you may notice include:

• headache
• tiredness
• changes in sleeping patterns
• some dizziness
• sensitivity to light, noise or busy environments
• being more grumpy or irritable or getting upset easily
• taking longer to process information or respond to questions
• finding it harder to concentrate on schoolwork or other activities.

You can also look at caring for your child after their head injury (external link)for advice on:

• how to care for your child after a mild brain injury/concussion
• warning signs to watch for
• when to seek medical help
• when to return to school, sport and other activities.

Your healthcare provider or hospital staff can also give you advice. If your child has more symptoms or they're taking a while to improve, they may need to see a concussion service funded by the Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC).

More serious brain injury

Children who have a more serious brain injury (whether through an accident or illness) can have longer-term symptoms. These can continue to affect them after they have left the hospital. Common long-term symptoms include tiredness (or fatigue) and changes in thinking, behaviour and emotions.

Tiredness (mental and physical)

• needing more sleep at night and feeling sleepy in the daytime
• running out of brain energy quickly while concentrating on schoolwork
• getting tired more easily after physical activities.

Read more about mental fatigue after brain injury(external link).

Other physical symptoms

Other physical symptoms can include:

• headaches
• ongoing sensitivity to noisy or busy environments
• problems with balance and coordination.

Thinking difficulties

Children may have difficulties with their thinking (also called cognitive difficulties). These can include:

• difficulty concentrating, staying focussed and taking in information to learn – read more about difficulties with concentration after brain injury(external link)
• difficulty holding things in memory – read more about memory difficulties after brain injury(external link)
• difficulties with planning and organisation – read more about brain injury and planning, problem solving and adapting to change(external link).

Behavioural and emotional symptoms

Your child may experience behavioural and emotional changes, such as:

• getting upset or angry more easily
• behaving more impulsively
• being restless or overactive
• being easily distracted
• having difficulty coping with change.
  
  

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How serious your child's injury is

A general practitioner (GP), ambulance paramedics or hospital staff will assess your child after a brain injury and let you know how serious the injury is. Healthcare providers usually classify traumatic brain injuries as mild, moderate or severe based on things such as:

• how long a child or young person is unconscious
• the level of loss of consciousness after the injury – this is based on a child's ability to open their eyes and respond with words or movements
• how long it takes a child to remember things after the accident.

Measuring the seriousness of a non-traumatic brain injury is more complicated. The seriousness of the brain injury may change during a child's illness.

The type of injury or part of the brain that was injured

Brain injuries can either:

• affect only a very specific part of the brain (focal)
• be more widespread (diffuse).

Each area (or lobe) of the brain does a different job, so injuries can have different effects depending on the area affected. There are also connections between areas of the brain, so an injury to 1 area may result in problems associated with other parts of the brain.

Your child's age and previous experiences

Your child's age and stage of development will also have an impact on how their brain injury affects them. If they have had any previous injuries or illnesses affecting the brain, then a brain injury may also affect them differently.

If your child has had a brain injury, the treatment they receive will depend on the type of injury and how serious it is.

A minor brain injury or concussion

If your child has a minor brain injury or concussion, your healthcare provider or hospital emergency department doctor can give advice on how to care for your child. They will give you a list of warning signs to watch for.

Sometimes, children need to spend a short time in hospital if they need further assessment or monitoring.

A more serious injury

If your child has a more serious injury, they will usually stay in hospital while they require medical monitoring or treatment (either at your local hospital or at Starship Hospital).

Ongoing help

Your child may also need ongoing help from rehabilitation professionals to return to actively participating in their home, school and community. This can be as an inpatient at a child rehabilitation centre (if your child has had a more serious brain injury), or as an outpatient in the community. Outpatient rehabilitation can be through a child rehabilitation service, a concussion service or a therapy team funded by the Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC).

The more information section below has resources for teachers and resources in other languages.

Most children who have a mild traumatic brain injury (also called a concussion) get better within 2 to 3 weeks, although they can take a little longer.

It's difficult for the doctors or the rehabilitation team to know exactly how long recovery will take if your child has a more serious brain injury, especially at the beginning.

Recovery from a brain injury can be a long process so it's important that you as parents look after yourselves too. Health professionals in the hospital, rehabilitation centre and community rehabilitation teams are also there to support parents and whānau.