Child Coma Injuries
A coma is a state of deep unconsciousness in which a child cannot be woken and does not respond to voices, touch or pain. Comas often follow a severe brain injury, but they can also be caused by a lack of oxygen, an infection or a medical mistake. Some children wake within days or weeks. Others remain in a prolonged state of reduced awareness, and many need years of therapy after they wake.
If your child has been or is still in a coma because of someone else’s negligence, your family may be entitled to compensation. Attorney Jeffrey Killino and our team represent families of injured children nationwide. Call 878-888-7878 for a free, confidential case review.
What Causes a Coma in a Child?
A coma happens when the parts of the brain that control awareness and wakefulness are damaged or stop working normally. In children, the most common causes are:
- Traumatic head injuries from car crashes, falls, sports or playground accidents, or physical abuse
- Lack of oxygen to the brain after a near-drowning, choking, strangulation or a breathing emergency
- Prolonged or untreated seizures
- Brain infections such as meningitis or encephalitis
- Drug or medication overdoses, including dosing errors in a hospital
- Surgical and anesthesia errors
Many of these causes are preventable. A defective helmet, an unsupervised pool, a missed infection or an anesthesia mistake can all point to someone who should be held responsible.
How Do Doctors Measure a Coma?
Doctors use the Pediatric Glasgow Coma Scale (PGCS) to measure how deep a child’s coma is. It is adapted from the adult scale so it can be used with infants and young children who cannot yet speak. The scale scores three responses:
- Eye opening: whether the child opens their eyes on their own, to sound, to pain or not at all
- Verbal response: from babbling, crying or speaking normally to making no sound
- Motor response: from moving normally to command to showing no movement at all
The scores add up to a total between 3 and 15. A score of 8 or lower usually means a severe brain injury and a deep coma. Doctors also use CT and MRI scans to find bleeding or swelling, and EEG tests to track brain activity. These records become important evidence if the coma was caused by negligence, so families should ask for copies early.
What Are Vegetative and Minimally Conscious States?
Not every child moves straight from a coma back to full awareness. Some pass through, or remain in, a disorder of consciousness:
- Vegetative state (also called unresponsive wakefulness): the child’s eyes may open and they may have sleep and wake cycles, but they show no signs of awareness of themselves or their surroundings.
- Minimally conscious state: the child shows small but clear signs of awareness, such as following an object with their eyes, responding to a simple command or smiling at a familiar voice.
These states can last weeks, months or longer. Recovery is very different from child to child, which is why a careful medical and legal assessment of your child’s future needs matters before any settlement is discussed.
Doctors often cannot say at first how much a child will recover. Younger brains can sometimes adapt in remarkable ways, but outcomes depend on the cause of the coma, how long it lasted and how quickly treatment began. That uncertainty is one reason families should avoid signing any early insurance settlement or release before the long-term picture is clear.
What Long-Term Care Might Your Child Need?
Children who wake from a coma often face a long recovery. Depending on the injury, your child may need:
- Inpatient rehabilitation followed by physical, occupational and speech therapy
- Neuropsychological testing and support for memory, attention and behavior
- Special education services and an individualized education program (IEP) at school
- Feeding support, breathing support or round-the-clock nursing care
- Wheelchairs, home modifications and an accessible vehicle
These costs can continue for a lifetime. A life care plan, prepared by medical and financial experts, estimates what your child will need in the years ahead so that a claim reflects the full cost of their care, not just the bills so far.
What Decisions Do Families Face?
Parents of a child in a coma are asked to make hard choices quickly: which treatments to try, where rehabilitation should happen, how to balance work and care, and how to pay for it all. You do not have to make the legal decisions alone. While you focus on your child, a lawyer can gather medical records, preserve evidence, deal with insurers and make sure no deadline is missed. Filing deadlines for children’s injury claims vary by state, so it is important to get advice early.
Families may also need to decide whether to request an independent medical review, whether a hospital’s own investigation can be trusted, and how to protect any money recovered for the child. In most states, a court must approve a settlement for a minor, and the funds are often placed in a protected account or structured settlement until the child reaches adulthood.
Who Can Be Held Responsible for a Child’s Coma?
A child’s coma may result from medical malpractice, negligence or a defective product. Depending on what happened, responsible parties can include:
- Doctors, surgeons, anesthesiologists and nurses: for example, when surgery is performed improperly, anesthesia is given incorrectly or the wrong medication is administered before or after a procedure.
- Hospitals and other employers of healthcare workers: a hospital can be held responsible for the mistakes of its staff, and directly responsible if it was careless in hiring or supervising them.
- Drivers: when a child suffers a coma in a motor vehicle accident caused by a negligent driver.
- Schools, daycares and other caregivers: when a child is hurt because of negligent supervision, such as on a school playground.
- Manufacturers and sellers: when a defective toy, helmet, playground or sports product causes the injury, anyone in the product’s chain of distribution may be liable.
How Can a Child Coma Lawyer Help Your Family?
If your child has suffered a coma because of someone else’s negligence, contact attorney Jeffrey Killino and our team for experienced, compassionate help. We investigate what happened, work with medical experts to understand your child’s future needs, and pursue compensation for medical care, therapy, lost quality of life and the cost of long-term care. Call us at 878-888-7878 or fill out our contact form for a free, confidential case review.
