Infant Brain Damage Symptoms
There are a variety of symptoms that infants with brain damage experience. Traumatic brain injuries have become one of the leading causes of lifelong disability, but there are also other causes of brain injury. Causes of brain damage vary anywhere from mild to serious. In more severe cases the condition can be fatal. In other cases, the symptoms may not become apparent until much later in life.
The Telltale Signs of Brain Damage
A few signs will give away that your child has suffered brain damage. In some cases, you can tell from simply looking at the child. For example, in terms of appearance, the child may have an abnormally large forehead, distorted facial features, neck stiffness, and difficulty with focusing the eyes.
Some of the common symptoms that your child might experience include:
- Seizures
- Poor feeding habits
- Incessant crying
- Difficulty sleeping with lying flat
- Fussiness for no reason
When a child suffers from brain damage, symptoms will become apparent in their behavior. For example, the child will cry excessively and have trouble sleeping.
Not All Cases are the Same
It is important to understand that not all cases are the same. In fact, many symptoms may not be present. In some cases, your child’s disability may not become apparent until a few years later when he enters school. Many times, children that have suffered brain damage will have a difficult time in school. They might also miss some of the developmental milestones. It is important to note, however, just because your child misses milestones doesn’t mean that he has this birth injury. All children will develop at their own pace. However, when they seem drastically developmentally behind, then it could be a sign that something may be wrong.
What are the Developmental Delays?
Symptoms of infant brain damage often present as developmental delays. In many cases, it won’t become apparent until after your child begins to miss these milestones. Developmental milestones include cognitive, physical, behavioral, emotional, and perceptual development. In terms of cognitive problems, your child may have issues with attention and concentrating. Along with that, he or she may have issues with memory and mental processing.
The prognosis of a brain injury depends on the extent of the damage. Normally, doctors will order imaging such as a CT or MRI scan to determine the extent of the damage. In many cases, brain damage can lead to a serious health condition known as cerebral palsy where the brain will struggle to communicate with the muscles. You should also understand that while surgery will lower the swelling of the brain, it can’t undo the damage done from this birth disorder. The brain activity will be monitored to determine the type of damage that has taken place.