J Korean Soc Traumatol.
2012 Mar;25(1):28-31.
Penetrating Orbitocranial Injury of a Pencil in a Pediatric Patient
- Affiliations
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- 1Department of Neurosurgery, Soonchunhyang University Bucheon Hospital, Gyeonggi-do, Korea. sunchulh@schmc.ac.kr
Abstract
- Pencils are common instruments for children to use and play with. This report describes an unusual penetrating orbitocranial injury in a 5-year-old girl who was struck in her facewith a pencil. She was holding it at a desk, and her friend pushed her back. The pencil penetrated the left lower eyelid and went deep into the right frontal lobe through the base of the skull. It was removed at the emergency room, after which brain CT was performed to detect the development of an intracranial hematoma. No complications occurred after conservative management with antibiotics and an antiepileptic drug. Pencils can be hazardous to children, and a penetrating head injury with a pencil may be managed without cranial surgery.
