Swollen Vein & Pain In Head After Injury, Nausea Feeling. Do I Need To See The ER?

Posted on Sat, 12 May 2012

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Sat, 12 May 2012 Answered on

Mon, 9 Jul 2012 Last reviewed on

Question : Thank you! Yes, 2 days ago, a heavy top to a vase fell off the top shelf of my pantry onto the front left side of my head. It feels like a vein is swollen and my head relly hurts. (off and on) I feel nauseus but have not vomitted. Do I need to go to the ER?

Answered by Dr. Pavan Kumar Gupta (4 hours later)

hello and thanks for the query.
I understand your concern since it is a head injury.
It is normal to feel nausea or to vomit once or twice and having some headache. The following is a list of signals that tell you that some thing is serious and you must go to ER

Unconscious, even briefly
Vomiting repeatedly
Bleeding or other liquid draining from the ears, mouth, or nose
Rapid swelling just above the ear
Bruising around the ear or eye
Unable to walk or talk normally
Acting strangely or drowsy
Unequal pupil size
Severe, worsening headache
Neck pain or stiffness
Seizures etc

If any of these symptoms or situations are present or if you have any concerns, go to ER immediately.

If none of these symptoms are present then you need not worry and relax.
You can take some Tylenol for the headache.
I hope to have answered your query however you can revert to me for any other query.
Thanks and best of luck.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar