If you’ve ever gotten bruised after a hard hit, felt a really sore muscle after a tough workout or bad sports injury, or had a discolored toenail after stubbing it a little too hard on the coffee table, then you’ve experienced a hematoma.
Most hematomas are common and usually not dangerous or life-threatening, but any that form in or on the brain can pose serious risks and require swift medical attention.
What Is a Hematoma?
A hematoma is categorized as blood that collects inside the body but outside of a blood vessel. Whenever a blood vessel tears or breaks, the blood within the vessel will leak out and begin filling cavities or entering the surrounding tissue.
One of the most common types of hematoma is the subcutaneous hematoma, otherwise known as a contusion or bruise.
Common causes of a hematoma include:
- Injury or bodily trauma
- Blood-thinning medications
- Bleeding disorders, such as hemophilia
- Viral infections, such as chickenpox or HIV
- Certain diseases, such as liver disease
- Cerebral atrophy, or brain shrinkage
What Is a Brain Hematoma?
A hematoma on or in the brain occurs when something, whether it be an injury, aneurysm, or other event, causes a blood vessel in the brain to break so that blood begins pooling on the surface of or within the brain.
While it’s possible to develop a hematoma on the head, wherein a blood vessel breaks between the scalp and the skull, that is not the same as a hematoma on the brain, which forms anywhere in between the skull and the brain itself.
What Are the Types of Brain Hematomas?
There are several types of brain hematomas, which are differentiated by where inside the brain cavity the vessel breaks or blood collects.
Subdural Hematoma
A subdural hematoma is the most common and also the most life-threatening type of brain hematoma. It occurs when blood collects between the dura mater—the outermost layer of the brain’s protective membrane—and the arachnoid mater—the middle layer of the membrane.
A subdural hematoma is most often caused by physical injury, but there are several reasons it could develop.
Subdural Hematoma Causes
- Head trauma from an accident or act of violence
- Brain shrinkage due to age
- Blood-thinning medication
- Alcohol abuse
- Aneurysm
- Tumor development
- Blood disorder
Subdural Hematoma Symptoms
- Consistent and severe headache
- Nausea and vomiting
- Vision problems
- Dizziness and balancing problems
- Mobility issues
- Muscle weakness
- Slurred speech
- Memory loss
- Personality change
- Paralysis
- Seizure
Subarachnoid Hematoma
A subarachnoid hematoma, sometimes referred to as a subarachnoid hemorrhage, is another type of brain hematoma where blood collects between the arachnoid mater and the pia mater—the layer of the protective membrane closest to the brain.
Subarachnoid Hematoma Causes
- Head trauma
- Brain aneurysm
- Arteriovenous malformation, or entanglement of blood vessels in the brain
- Vasculitis, or swollen blood vessels
- Blood-thinning medication
- Drug abuse
Subarachnoid Hematoma Symptoms
- Disorientation
- Nausea and vomiting
- Stiff neck
- Irritability or personality change
- Sudden physical weakness or numbness
- Muscle pain
- Dizziness
- Sensitivity to light and vision problems
- Slurred speech
- Seizures
Epidural Hematoma
An epidural hematoma occurs when blood collects between the skull and the dura mater, or the outermost layer of the brain’s protective membrane.
In the majority of cases, an epidural hematoma forms as a result of a skull fracture wherein the break causes a vein or vessel to also break, but there are other possible causes, as well.
| Epidural Hematoma Causes
· Skull fracture · Infection in the brain · Blood disorder · Tumor development · Arteriovenous malformation* · Cavernous malformation* |
Epidural Hematoma Symptoms
· Confusion or disorientation · Dizziness, drowsiness, or loss of consciousness · Severe headache · Nausea and vomiting · Physical weakness, especially on one side of the body · Seizures |
*While arteriovenous and cavernous malformations both involve tangled blood vessels, arteriovenous malformation is the entanglement of high-pressure blood vessels. In contrast, cavernous malformation is the entanglement of low-pressure blood vessels.
Intracerebral Hemorrhage
An intracerebral hemorrhage, most often called a brain bleed, occurs when a blood vessel inside the brain breaks, causing blood to collect within the brain instead of on the surface, where subdural, subarachnoid, and epidural hematomas form.
Intracerebral Hemorrhage Causes· Head trauma · Aneurysm · Blood clot · Arteriovenous malformation · Tumor development |
Intracerebral Hemorrhage Symptoms· Confusion or disorientation · Loss of consciousness · Sudden weakness, especially on one side of the body · Severe headache · Nausea and vomiting · Vision problems · Seizures |
Brain hematomas are serious events that Georgia Neurosurgical Institute is prepared to treat.
The neurosurgeons and team at Georgia Neurosurgical Institute are highly trained and experienced in treating hematomas on the brain with careful precision. The brain is the most important organ in the body—when something happens to risk its function, our team is here to treat the problem swiftly and skillfully. Your head is in good hands when you turn to our practice.
Schedule a consultation with Georgia Neurosurgical Institute today: 478-743-7092
Georgia Neurosurgical Institute offers exceptional treatments for the brain and spine to patients throughout Middle Georgia. With offices in Macon and satellite locations in Dublin, Locust Grove, and Warner Robins, we’re able to treat patients in and around:
- Dublin
- Forsyth
- Locust Grove
- Macon
- McDonough
- Milledgeville
- Perry
- Warner Robins
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