Punched In Head Many Times? Am I At Risk??!

[jackadams]

Hi,

Sadly I was in a bar fight two nights ago. Just to be clear I am not going to bars anymore....thats it. Anyways I think I took quite the beating to my head. Both my left and right temple area are very sore to touch. They are also very sore when I open my mouth wide. I also have a spot behind my ear thats sore.

I honestly have no clue how many times I was hit in the head but I think it was a good many. I do have a bit of memory loss during the fight but I was also drunk so that could be part of the reason. I remember bits and pieces of the fight and know that there were like 4 dudes hitting me.

Anyways they did no damage to my face but my temple area on the right and left side are really sore.

So I went to the Emergency Room last night and the guy did not do much really. He asked me how I felt and I said "decent." He asked if I lost conciousness during the fight and I said it was a bit foggy and I dont really remember some parts. He took out a light and looked at my eyes for a while then got me to follow the light with my eyes.

Then he felt around my head for bumps and said he did not feel any skull fractures or anything like that which was good. He then said he thought that because when I opened my mouth that my temples hurt that it was more of the muscles being bruised under my hair there. Oh and when I say temple areas I mean in line with my eye level on the sides of my head.

The doctor then took out a little flashlight and looked at my eyes and made me follow the light. He said he thought I would be just fine and didn't want me to do a CT scan because I didn't need the radiation.

So now im worried though that I could have a slow bleeding injury to my brain. I feel decent today but the temple areas are still sore and so is the spot behind my ear. I do think the pain is finally starting to go down a bit maybe but not much. I also was sleepy yesterday but then had trouble sleeping and had weird dreams.

Anyways now im wondering if I need to head back to the ER tommorrow and get an MRI done. I read a lot of stories online about slow bleeding injuries that can causes damage or even death months after the injury. But the doctor told me that if the pain went away and I felt fine I have nothing to worry about at all. He said only come back if the pain gets worse and I feel worse overall.

So from what I read its not as clear cut as this. If I feel better and the pain goes away does that mean im in the clear or do I have to worry for months to come? I do feel a little sicky today just as a side note but nothing too extreme....my stomachs a bit upset and I feel a little dizzy.

Anyways it has been nearly 48 hours since the injury now. If I get better and feel fine should I still get an MRI or just forget about it? Thanks and I promise guys I will not being going to bars anymore. Im 26 now and its time to grow up....no more bar fights and drinking too much. I have way too much going for me in life to get into fights with angry unhappy people at bars :) Thanks for anyone who can help!  

[Dr. Kokil Mathur]

Hi
Welcome to the MedHelp forum!
In all probability there will be no brain damage. It will be more of soft tissue injury.  This will heal with time.
However with punches falling on head, it is always better to go for a MRI of the brain to rule out any bleed or injury. Also an ENT checkup should be done to rule out any injury to the ear. Hope this helps. Do let me know if there is any thing else and keep me posted. Take care!

[jackadams]

I guess basically what I want to know is if my symptoms go away do I have to worry about some sort of brain damage showing up say a month down the road or death that comes out of nowhere?

Im hoping that you gradually get worse when somethings going wrong but that doesnt seem to be the case with a lot of health problems. If I feel fine and head stops hurting can I consider myself in the clear or do I still have brain damage problems to worry about in the future? Thanks