Case Report / Olgu Sunumu
33
©
Copyright 2017 by Society of Pediatric Emergency and Intensive Care Medicine
Journal of Pediatric Emergency and Pediatric Intensive Care published by Galenos Yayınevi.
Address for Correspondence/Yazışma Adresi: Anıl Er MD, Dokuz Eylül University Faculty of Medicine, Division of Pediatric Emergency Medicine, İzmir, Turkey
E-mail: anler.278@gmail.com
Received/Geliş Tarihi: 07.12.2016 Accepted/Kabul Tarihi: 06.01.2017
Introduction
Subgaleal hematoma (SGH) is a well-known condition in
neonates especially after prolonged or instrumental delivery,
but it has been rarely reported in childhood.
1-5
This condition
is usually secondary to minor head trauma and an interesting
mechanism of injury is hair pulling.
3,4,6-8
In spite of its benign
course, subgaleal hematomas may complicate by vision or life-
threatening events.
6,8-11
In this paper, we present a case of
uncomplicated SGH after hair pulling and aimed to describe
its pathogenesis and management.
Case
An 8-year-old girl was admitted to the emergency department
with progressive right scalp swelling and headache. She
denied head trauma, but she explained that schoolmates
had strongly pulled her hair 11 days ago. She had realized
scalp swelling two days after hair pulling and headache has
arisen next day. On initial assessment, vital signs were stable
(heart rate: 84 beats per minute, respiratory rate: 18/min,
blood pressure: 90/55mmHg) and Glasgow Coma Scale score
was 15. Physical examination revealed a fluctuant and mildly
tender scalp swelling extending from forehead to neck on
the right side of the head. Extra-ocular muscle movements
were intact and there was no proptosis or facial edema.
Neurological evaluation was normal. Neither her medical
history nor family history indicated any sign and symptom of
coagulation disorders. Also, she did not take any medications
such as acetylsalicylate. Complete blood count was normal
with a hemoglobin level of 12.6 g/dL, hematocrit 37% and
platelet 294.000/mm³. Aggregated thrombocytes were seen
on peripheral blood smear microscopy. Prothrombin time and
partial thromboplastin time were 12 seconds and 27 seconds,
respectively. Computed tomography (CT) of the head showed
diffuse subgaleal heterogeneous fluid collection without
Subgaleal hematoma is defined as blood collection within the
loose areolar tissue of the scalp. The major cause of subgaleal
hematoma in children is minor head trauma. It is characterized
by diffuse scalp swelling crossing the suture lines which usually
results in spontaneous recovery. Underlying coagulopathy should
be evaluated in case of subgaleal hematoma after a trivial trauma.
Another consideration for physicians, who face with a case of
subgaleal hematoma, is complications such as proptosis, keratitis,
and even airway compromise as a life-threatening event. Here, we
present a case of uneventfully resolved subgaleal hematoma related
with hair pulling.
Keywords: Hematoma, pediatric, scalp, trauma
Subgaleal hematom, saçlı derideki gevşek gözenekli dokuda kan
birikimi olarak tanımlanmaktadır. Çocuklarda subgaleal hematomun
en önemli nedeni hafif kafa travmasıdır. Saçlı deride sütür hatlarını
geçen ve kendiliğinden gerileyen şişlik ile karakterizedir. Çocuklarda
önemsiz travmalar sonrası gelişen subgaleal hematomlarda altta
yatan koagülasyon bozukluğu varlığı araştırılmalıdır. Bu olgularla
karşılaşan hekimlerin dikkat etmesi gereken diğer bir nokta ise
subgaleal hematomun propitozis, keratit ve hatta havayolu tıkanıklığı
gibi yaşamı tehdit eden komplikasyonlardır. Burada komplikasyonsuz
iyileşen saç çekmeye bağlı bir subgaleal hematom olgusu sunulmuştur.
Anahtar Kelimeler: Hematom, pediyatrik, saçlı deri, travma
Abstract Öz
1
Dokuz Eylül University Faculty of Medicine, Division of Pediatric Emergency Medicine, İzmir, Turkey
2
Dokuz Eylül University Faculty of Medicine, Department of Emergency Medicine, İzmir, Turkey
Anıl Er
1
, Aykut Çağlar
1
, Fatma Akgül
1
, Emel Ulusoy
1
, Emre Karslı
2
, Durgül Yılmaz
1
, Murat Duman
1
Çocuklarda Subgaleal Hematomun Nadir Bir Nedeni: Saç Çekme
A Rare Cause of Subgaleal Hematoma in Children: Hair Pulling
DOI: 10.4274/cayd.54254
J Pediatr Emerg Intensive Care Med 2017;4:33-35