Has anyone had someone close to them have a concussion with lasting memory issues?

To make a long story short- 3 weeks ago (the Saturday after Thanksgiving), DH fell off of our roof. He fell about 12-14 feet all in all onto our deck. DD and I were home at the time and actually watched the entire thing. He lost conciousness (sp)- but had come to when I reached him (about 30 seconds or so after he hit the deck.) He was taken away in an ambulance and stayed overnight in the hospital. He was diagnosed with a concussion. Other than the concussion, he has no other injuries. He is SO lucky.

He was having extreme memory issues for 24+ hours after his fall. He kept repeating the same questions over and over again, and had no idea what happened to him. Still to this day, there is about a 3-4 hour window of time on that day that he can't recall at all.

Now, he is still having some memory issues. For example- he just asked me the same question that he asked me 30 mins prior. When I told him that he just asked me that, he had NO idea. He has moments where he spaces out. You could be talking to him and he's out in space somewhere. Its freaky. Even he says that sometimes there is "nothing going on up there." He was not like this prior.

In addition to the memory issues, he's having some shooting pains in his legs that were not there before his accident. He's seen a bunch of doctors, and so far, none of them have been able to help him. He saw a neurologist today and he is scheduled for an EEG and another MRI next week. The neurologist said that sometimes people who have concussions have lasting issues for 4-6 weeks- but after those initial first days, I have seen NO improvement in his memory, and I'm really getting worried.

Does anyone know of anyone who had a concussion that had lasting effects like this?

TIA

Message edited 12/14/2010 8:45:49 AM.

Re: Has anyone had someone close to them have a concussion with lasting memory issues?

It sounds like he has a brain injury. He should be treated for it. get a neurologist that specializes in it. When you bang your head the brain rocks in the skull and can have lasting effects. Short term memory is the first thing that goes. I betcha he can remember everything from 10 years ago!
Anyway, it's treatable and with the right therapy and time he will do fine.

Good luck and I'm sorry to hear about this.

Re: Has anyone had someone close to them have a concussion with lasting memory issues?

Re: Has anyone had someone close to them have a concussion with lasting memory issues?

Message edited 12/14/2010 3:14:51 PM.

Re: Has anyone had someone close to them have a concussion with lasting memory issues?

agreed, memory loss is usually an indication of TBI )traumatic brain injury)

Re: Has anyone had someone close to them have a concussion with lasting memory issues?

My mom slipped on ice on New Years Day two years ago. She lost consciousness for 20 seconds or so and had a bad concussion, but no other injuries. She still does not remember the fall or about an hour before or after. I think she was "off" for a couple of months after, but she's totally fine now. She still had memory issues for a couple of months and just seemed off to me, but she really did get better. I would get everything checked out again just in case.

ETA: Her short-term memory was horrible after the fall. She didn't remember I had moved out or that Christmas had passed. It was so so scary.

Good luck. I hope he feels better.

Message edited 12/20/2010 6:13:06 PM.