Shock

[ljdksa]

Hiya,

My 7-yr-old fell off a slide at the park and has a greenstick(?) fracture to wrist. He also seemeds to be uncoscious/inresponsive for a few seconds after. He has been to A&E and had lower arm plastered and seems fine now.

At the time, he was very pale and shaky with chattering teeth, which the hospital said was "shock."

I'm just wondering if there is any medical benefit from someone getting shock? Is there some way that it actually helps?

Thank you xx

[237SJ]

Maybe it`s protecting the vital organs as blood retreats from the extremities.

[ljdksa]

Yes, thanks, 237SJ. That could very well be right. I can see the logic of fainting, but wasn't quite sure what the body did during shock. Thanks for reply.

[ummmm]

Myself and my son get knocked over on a pedestrian crossing and he went into shock...(no serious damage)

When I gave birth to my youngest I went into shock.....It's horrible. They said it was because I gave birth too quickly. I couldn't hold him because I was shaking so much. I was also freezing cold. I have no idea why the body would do this...

[Sqad]

SJ is spot on, + redirecting blood form the skin reduces heat loss.

Endorphins are also released which do many things, one of which is an analgesic effect and a feeling of "well being"

[ummmm]

I didn't get a feeling of 'well being'

[ljdksa]

Thank you, all! It did make sense when SJ said that. I suppose, the body does not know how badly it's injured at first? And just protects the most important parts. It's just that I think the shock made him feel worse than the actual injury, so I was wondering how it would help him.

[ummmm]

Yes....It was being so so cold that scared me. I have never felt so cold. They layered blankets on me and it made no difference.

[ljdksa]

Was quite horrible, Ummm. I wrapped him in a coat and hugged him, but he was so shivery. Did wear off when we got to the hospital, but wasn't nice!

[rowanwitch]

In real 'shock' not just a fright type it is because blood is diverted to the vital organs to maintain oxygen supply to brain, heart etc..part of the action of increased adrenaline . the brain interprets these changes as cold although the difference may be slight, so responds by triggering 'warm up' actions like shivering it is possible this also warms muscles so they are more efficient at removing the person from danger... different types of shock tend to trigger the same pathway regardless whether there is blood loss from injury or not but there are lots of other mechanisms involved...

One important thing to remember is that children/young adults can lose a lot of blood or fluid volume before they show signs that accompany shock like faster pulse and drop in blood pressure so it is often a severe emergency by the time you can see something is wrong... its why after a big fall etc it's always important to watch them a bit more closely even if they seem alright at first.

[237SJ]

When I found out my dad had had a fatal heart attack I went extememly cold and the thing I noticed most was that I kept weeing. I had to drive to Devon in that state and I had to stop at motorway service stations to use the loo. I presume it is the body getting rid of any kind of surplus as it gets ready with it`s fight or flight response. Animals do that too. If you go into a field of sheep the first thing they do is have a wee while they`re trying to decide whether to leg it or not.

[ljdksa]

Thank you both. That's interesting Rowan, I like to know how these things work! He didn't actually lose any blood, but did hit the floor quite hard. The hospital did pulse, SATS and checked his pupils and head, so I hope they would have noticed anything more worrying.
Thanks everyone, for replies x