Contrecoup Brain Injury

Excerpt

A contrecoup brain injury is a contusion to the brain that occurs at a location distant from, and typically opposite to, the site of impact to the head. The term contrecoup is French for "counterblow". Hippocrates was the first individual to recognize the concept of a contrecoup injury to describe a fracture that occurred directly opposite to the point of traumatic impact. From the 16th to the 19th centuries, contracoup injuries have been occasionally reported in the literature. The term countercoup has also been used to describe this type of injury. The etiology and significance of a contrecoup injury have been discussed and debated for centuries. Unlike diffuse axonal injury or brain edema, which are widespread throughout the brain and can result from trauma, contrecoup injuries are typically more focal. Contrecoup injuries have also been considered to result in visual abnormalities following minor head injuries.