Coma
Doctors assess a person's level of consciousness using a tool called the Glasgow Coma Scale . This level is monitored constantly for signs of improvement or deterioration. The Glasgow Coma Scale assesses three things:
Most people in a coma will have a total score ofeight or less.A lower score means someone may have experienced more severe brain damage and could be less likely to recover.
In the short term, a person in a coma will normally be looked afterin an intensive care unit (ICU) . Treatment involves ensuring their condition is stable and their body functions, such as breathing and blood pressure, are supported while the underlying cause is treated.
In the longer term, healthcare staff will give supportive treatment on a hospital ward. This can involve providing nutrition, trying to prevent infections, moving the person regularly so they don't develop bedsores, and gently exercising their joints tostop thembecoming tight.
Read about what a coma is, how someone in a coma will be looked after, what you can do to help, and what happens when someone recovers from a coma.
Someone who is in a coma is unconscious and has minimal brain activity. They're alive, butcan't be woken up and show no signs of being aware. The person's eyes will be closed andthey'llappear to be u
Doctors assess a person's level of consciousness using a tool called the Glasgow Coma Scale . This level is monitored constantly for signs of improvement or deterioration. The Glasgow Coma Scale asses
The experience of being in a coma differs from person to person. Some people feel they can remember events that happened around them while theywere in a coma, while others don't. Some people have rep
A coma usually only lasts a few weeks, during which time the person may start to gradually wake up and gain consciousness, or progress into a different state of unconsciousness called a vegetative sta
For further information and support from healthcare professionals and the families of people in a coma, you may find the followingwebsites helpful: Brain and Spine Foundation Headway : the brain