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What Causes Nose Bleeding And Headache After A Fall?

Posted on Fri, 27 Jun 2014

Question: My 8 year old son was swimming and ran from the pool playing and fell down 4 steps. He fell on his butt and bounced down step to step quickly. He said his head never hit anything but it was jarring up and down with the bumpy stairs. He ran to me and I noticed his nose was bleeding. The bleeding is only from one side of the nose and it stopped with about 2 minutes of pressure. I am a RN and his eyes look good both equal and reactive to light. He is acting normal. He is complaining of a headache in the forehead area. He is continuing to play. Should I take him in for a check up or give him some more time? He had a red area on his bottom but that is not even red now.

Answered by Dr. Kerry Pottinger (1 hour later)

Brief Answer:
Observation and pain relief only at present.

Detailed Answer:
Hi,
Thank you for using Healthcare Magic. Your son has taken a blow to his head but from your assessment of him, I do not consider he needs medical attention or a visit to the ED.
You have noted the correct signs. I would suggest that if he becomes unexpectedly drowsy, starts vomiting, his pupils change and become unequal, his headache becomes severe or his behaviour becomes inappropriate then these would be signs that indicate he needs to be seen in the ED.
At the moment I suggest pain relief for the headache such as paracetamol and observation.
I hope this has reassured you. If you have any more questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Regards,
Dr K A Pottinger,
MBChB. FRCA

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Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar