Related Experiment Videos
Craniocerebral injury resulting from transorbital stick penetration in children
C Di Roio1, C Jourdan, C Mottolese
1Département d'Anesthésie Réanimation, Hôpital Neurologique et Neurochirurgical Pierre Wertheimer, Lyon, France. claudio.diroio@wanadoo.fr
Insights
Transorbital penetrating craniocerebral injuries are rare but serious. Prompt clinical, radiological, and ophthalmological evaluations, including advanced imaging and antibiotics, are crucial for managing these severe pediatric head injuries.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Neurosurgery
- Ophthalmology
- Emergency Medicine
Background:
- Craniocerebral injuries involving transorbital penetration are uncommon in children.
- Prompt diagnosis and management are critical for favorable outcomes.
Observation:
- A 6-year-old sustained a chopstick orbital injury, developing a meningeal syndrome and cerebral abscess treated with aspiration and antibiotics.
- A 4-year-old fell on a metal rod, resulting in a palpebral wound, motor deficits, and coma due to intracerebral hematoma.
Findings:
- The first child's cerebral abscess was managed conservatively with needle aspiration and antibiotics.
- The second child showed improvement without infectious complications or motor sequelae after treatment for intracerebral hematoma.
Implications:
- Emphasizes the need for comprehensive clinical, radiological (CT/MRI), and ophthalmological assessments in transorbital penetrating head injuries.
- Highlights the importance of timely antibiotic therapy to prevent or treat infections in pediatric craniocerebral trauma.
Objects:
Two children were admitted to hospital for treatment of craniocerebral injury with transorbital penetration.
Methods:
One child aged 6 years and 6 months had poked a chopstick in his orbit. There was no report of either a palpebral or an ocular wound. He had subsequently developed a meningeal syndrome with a cerebral abscess managed by needle aspiration biopsy and intravenous antibiotics. The other child, aged 4, had fallen onto a metal rod. He presented with a palpebral wound, motor disorders and coma, all due to a frontal intracerebral hematoma. There was an improvement in outcome without complications of an infectious nature or motor sequelae.
Conclusions:
Such head injuries are rare. Clinical, radiological and ophthalmological investigations must be performed, including computed tomography (CT) scan or cerebral magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with antibiotic treatment for suspected microorganisms.