?? about children and unconsiousness

Jolie, BSN · Apr 22, 2005

i have a friend her dd is 12 she has depression, anxiety, asthma, severe allergies, & add. yesterday at school she passed out and was unresponsive for 45min. her dr. and the school nurse told the mom that she was just faking it for attention. the child has bruises on her coratid artery and her chest (somewhere mom didn't specify) from trying to get a pulse and make sure she was still breathing.
what is your opinion can a child fake being unresponsive? she does not bruise easily so they had to be pressing fairly hard to leave a bruise. could a child with stand that kind of pressure and have no response?
the child is going to have a brain scan done on monday.
i am just courious to get some other nurses opinions in this matter. i would greatly appreciate it.
thanks,
angie

i can't fathom a child of 12 being capable of "faking" unconsciousness for 5 minutes, let alone 45! please understand i am not trying to be flip with this next comment: if she truly has adhd, how could she possibly remain "focused" on not moving, blinking, giggling, etc. for that length of time?

how was she cared for during this time? was ems called, as they should have been? was she assessed by the nurse, paramedics, taken to the er, seen by her private pediatrician? how did she respond to verbal commands, handling, painful stimuli? was there any evidence of seizure activity? exposure to allergans or toxic substances? were any studies done? what was her blood sugar? how about a tox screen? has she recently been ill, or started on a new medication? has she been upset (emotionally) lately. is she seeing a specialist for her mental health treatment? if so, did that doctor evaluate her?

if this were my child, and my pediatrician had such a blase attitude about this event, i would be finding a new pediatrician. this child needs a work-up.

akcarmean, LPN · Apr 22, 2005

i can't fathom a child of 12 being capable of "faking" unconsciousness for 5 minutes, let alone 45! please understand i am not trying to be flip with this next comment: if she truly has adhd, how could she possibly remain "focused" on not moving, blinking, giggling, etc. for that length of time?
how was she cared for during this time? was ems called, as they should have been? was she assessed by the nurse, paramedics, taken to the er, seen by her private pediatrician? how did she respond to verbal commands, handling, painful stimuli? was there any evidence of seizure activity? exposure to allergans or toxic substances? were any studies done? what was her blood sugar? how about a tox screen? has she recently been ill, or started on a new medication? has she been upset (emotionally) lately. is she seeing a specialist for her mental health treatment? if so, did that doctor evaluate her?
if this were my child, and my pediatrician had such a blase attitude about this event, i would be finding a new pediatrician. this child needs a work-up.

she was at the school and know the school nurse looked at her, and i believe ems was called but not sure how long it was before they were called. she was not taken to the hospital. she does have very bad allergies she is allergic to about 22 different things some out door, some food, or preservaties. she takes a lunch from home so she don't eat anything she is allergic to. she is a very smart child and knows to look at labels or ask what is in a food before she eats it. she has had asthma and allergies since she was 6mths old. she has been in and out of the hospital. she did she her pediatrician. she wondered if she was faking it also to get attention. they have a very uncomfortable home life and she does see a counslor. one of the medications she is on is concerta i looked it up and some of the side effects and didn't see anything that would relate. she has been on the same medications for about 2 months now. her concerta was increased 2 months ago. i don't know to much else but her mom and i seem to think there is something serious going on and that she is not faking it. i have seen this before with her but it usually only lasted about 5 min. and then she was real tired afterwards. i know that on monday she is having a brain scan done. but that is as much as i know. i do believe the child i have know her mom since we were 12 yrs old and have been best friend ever since, so i know this girl just like i know my own daughter. i truly believe something is going on. but i wanted the opinion of some more experienced nurses .i really appreciate you replying.

angie

Jolie, BSN · Apr 22, 2005

So, the pediatrician saw her AFTER THE EVENT WAS OVER, and pronounced that she was faking it? Time for a new pediatrician, in my opinion.

You mention that she has had similar, but brief episodes before that left her feeling very tired afterward. That sounds like seizure activity or some type of migraine to me.

I would highly recommend a visit to a pediatric neurologist ASAP.

Please encourage her mom to be persistent in getting this child a proper evaluation and treatment. Thanks for helping out!

yogastudentRN · May 5, 2005

Yes, sounds like you should see a ped neuro and make sure she is not having partial or absence seizures. Being tired afterwards is one sign that it was a seizure (as the pp mentioned). Also, try to keep a record of how much sleep she gets and exactly when and where these episides occur. Watch her eyes and mouth carefully and write down exactly what you see (if there is any movement) and for how long.

HTH some, good luck.