Children: What to Expect

Brain injury symptoms in children and teens are similar to those experienced by adults, but the functional impact can be very different. Children are not small adults; the brain of a child is still developing.

The brain of a child is continuing to develop. Research has shown that although a child can appear to recover more quickly from a brain injury than an adult this is not the case. A brain injury actually can have a more devastating impact on a child than an injury of the same severity on a mature adult..

Concussion in Children and Teens

New research and findings regarding pediatric concussion are being published every day. Research is exploring why some children are able to recover from a concussion and return to a normal routine within a few weeks while others struggle with persistent symptoms for months. Research is also finding that on average females can take longer to recover than males. More and more is being learned about long term effects of concussion on children and their developing minds. A child may seem to completely return to normal after a concussion but once they reach a new stage of development and new skills are needed, such as abstract thinking, a child may struggle due to his injury and be mistakenly labeled as having a learning disability or emotional problem.

Below are resources to review and learn more about concussion in children including tools a parent can use to better understand appropriate care after a concussion, what type of follow up with physicians should be done and how to recognize symptoms.