What Is the Glasgow Coma Scale?

Hi,

my 72-year-old dear grandfather fell down in a shop, still due to unknown reasons though the doctors think it was syncope, and unfortunately, damaged he hit with his head so hard he now has several contusions on his brain. A bit after the fall, he was concious and was speaking a few words, but later on everything got worse. He is now in intensive care, especially because he had a kidney transplantation five months ago. At first, he could not recognise us, he could not speak and was, of course, sleeping all the time. Now, after 10 days, he says a few understandable words, has moments of clarity when he recognises us and express a little smile to see us, but then he gets lost, confused and almost looks like he is halucinating. His motor skills are good, but I’m concerned about the emotional and cognitive recovery. What could we expect?

Thanks!

My friend, 57 years old, suffered a road traffic accident on 2 Feb 2019 (yesterday).
His GCS is 4.
What are his chances of recovery?

I was in a coma in 2014. I don't know what my score was but i believe it was low. They gave me a 1% chance of survival, and b4 reaching family, had already contacted the science institute to donate my body. How can i find out what my score was?

My father is from one week in coma now and he is in scale under 8 of coma..he fell in coma by a blood pressure and he opens his eyes or moves his legs or mouth unconsciously.. for how long he can stay in this condition?

My brother been in an accident and he got gcs of 5 due to brain injury . He is on life support and we are scared whether anyone experienced and what are the hopes?

My mum just got stroke at cerebellum and Stem My dad immediately sent her to the hospital on around 4 am on 29th August 2018 . When my mum arrived to the hospital she was still conscious and spoke out with my aunt.

After, she was done surgery and opened the skull out. She kinda in coma but still good at motor, eyes movement, and verbal. However, on Saturday night her score of EVM was dropped and the doctor decided to gave her a melting blood medicines. On the Sunday morning, she was sent to CT scan again and the result is she has bleeding at left side of thalamus around 1.4 cm. , oval size shape. This is why it's made her score dropped. Now, on 4th September 2018, her EVM score is 5-6 and still stable, her blood pressure and heart rate are 138/80 and 68-90. I am believe it's will be better and better soon. I have HOPE!! and I believe in my mum. She is very healthy person, don't have any personal diseases. Moreover, the doctor said my mum worst than last Saturday but still stable and he will send my mum for CT scan in this two up coming day.

My daughter, her friend and my ex husband were all in an MVA, all had GCS 3 on scene. My 17 year old daughter died in the ambulance, her friend was in a coma for 2 weeks and has mostly recovered physically and my ex husband was in a coma for a month has physical limitations but seems to be pretty good in regards to his brain injury, so one never knows how anyone's story will turn out. Keep hoping but also understand the reality of such a trauma.

My niece had a very serious accident where she was hit by a car.She had severe head injury and is currently lying in ICU unit. Have not woken up since the last 3 days. What are her chances of recovering.

To the person who described having an accident after falling asleep at the wheel (the post was on Nov.3, 2016 at 1:46 a.m.), it is clear from your post that you are facing both the realities and "what-ifs" of your accident.  Doing that much emotional work many hours each day (you were up at 1:46 a.m.) must be exhausting. I feel compassion for the part of your experience that isn't under your control - - for example, how your family has reacted. That may or may not be yours to fix.  Family dynamics are often very complex, even under the best of circumstances. And you're not in the best of circumstances. 

My career of nearly 25 years has been working with acutely ill and actively dying patients and their loved ones. It has been my experience that critical and life-threatening illness ( especially involving a loved one in a coma) can bring out either the best or the worst in families. And sometimes it takes surviving the "worst" before you ever get to the "best". I wonder if your emotional perceptions of their behavior towards you has completely recovered? And how did you feel about your place in the family before you had your accident. Only you can answer both of those questions.  Having a mental health professional or a Minister you trust might help you find your "new" emotional self and establish more stability in your own self judgment. No amount of time or recovery or reflection can change what happened so you might further your progress of recovery by staying in your own present life.

I really recommend that you talk to your Primary Physician about how you can have a solid, good night's sleep more days of the week.  The hours of 1:00 a.m.- 4:00 a.m. can distort our thinking and those can be very lonely hours, as well.  Please forgive yourself first for what you truly are accountable for and then forgive those you feel have abandoned you. They probably haven't... and I'm accepting that each person who grows up in a difficult family environment is seen through that same filter until they choose not to be vulnerable to it.

Wishing you continual recovery and hour-by-hour progress each day.

mjl, San Diego

2 years ago I suffered a brain stem stroke and was a 3. I was 33 years old.  Here I am typing this to you . Miracles happen everyday 

my grandson was in a car accident 12-20-15, he has a tramatic brain injury and he also had a stroke...l think his GCS score would be a 7or8  hes been in a vegetative state since - are there any success stories out there of any kind?    hes only 17....its been almost a year and a half...we have tried fish oil - and ambien - with no luck...we would do anything to help him.....l just dont know what to do.......l dont know what to hope for - l dont know what to pray for.....he is suffering...SUFFERING - GOD HELP ME

?Thank you all for sharing your stories.  God Bless you all.

30 years ago, I was 25 and was in an accident that resulted in TBI, and close head trauma.  I was an elite athlete and this happened going home from a training ride.

I had an Out of Body Experience at the scene.

I was GCS 3 for days, then a 4, and came out of my 'coma' on day 11.  I was given a 6% chance of survival and when my family all gathered from out of town- they were mainly concerned with consent for me to be an Organ donor.  

After 6 weeks total of therapy, etc.  They let me go home.

Well, I'm still here, have a profession, family, but, 30 years later it still haunts me.  I think about some aspect of this traumatic accident EVERY DAY!

Stay Strong my friends,

Todd Bouton, MS, PA-C

Todd_Sails AT yahoo.com

My son was ruled a 3 by one paramedic and a 5 (3 on pain response) by another following a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. He was found about 15 minutes later and immediately flown to a large trauma center and evaluated by a trauma surgeon and a neurosurgeon. There was nothing they could do and he was placed in the neuro ICU unit and pronounced brain dead 12 hours later. The pathologist said he never felt a thing, but the score of a 5 makes me wonder if he was having a response to a sterna rub that he felt pain in his head. I'm hoping he felt nothing after the shot, but I just don't know.

Thank you so very much for sharing your story. I just got back from visiting my sister who had a GCS of 2.5 upon arrival. Day 25 still in coma and on ventilator I was looking to see when or if she will wake

Very good and hopeful information on recovery from DAI

hello , my friend is in hospital for last 8 days because of edema (blood clotting ) at brain stem as he has high blood pressure. initially he has a gcs level 4 & after 4 days he has gcs of 5 for a day only. But now he has (4/5). so is there any time limit that gcs should increase unless it will never increase?

I was a 3 for four days. Everything in life happens for a reason and it's our job to remove judgment in waiting for the answer. I am in the process of writing a book about my experiences as motivation to even the uninjured, but especially for head injury victims and their families in learning how to deal. My experience is more than I can share right now. I have a TBI so organizing and getting it complete is a bit of a challenge, but it will be done. Me talking about my experiences have changed lives in drastic ways for the good. I have been witness to friends with injuries that were less severe than mine...die. This had left me with survivors guilt for many years so in an attempt to not waste my life and with the use of the internet and some pretty good discernment I was able to understand myself. This later turned into me seeing it in everything from people to animals to nature itself. There is a common truth and any separation from that is only a lack....A lack of the truth of nature, love. Everything is love. The trees don't struggle to reach the sky, nor does a river 'try' to flow downstream.