Skull Fractures

A fractured skull, or cranial fracture, is a crack in the cranial bone ranging from minor to life-threatening. The fractures are usually caused by falls, car accidents, sports injuries, gunshots, or head traumas. Skull breaks generally come in three types: linear, or simple breaks with no displacement of the bone; depressed, with bone fragments pushed inward into the brain; and comminuted, in which the bone is cracked into small pieces with some displacement. They present differently depending on how severe and where the break is, from small scalp cuts to life-threatening conditions like seizures, paralysis, loss of sensation, brain injury, or death. The diagnosis and treatment both are based on the nature of the fracture. Dressing and observation are possible for mild cases, but for other types of fractures, surgical management is needed with the use of plates, screws, and pins to stabilize the bone. The process of healing can be time-consuming, and the use of rest, imaging follow-up, medication, and therapy must take place to achieve return of function and avoid long-term damage.