The document defines a hematoma as a collection of blood outside of blood vessels, usually referring to clotted blood within tissues. Hematomas are caused by injuries to blood vessels that disrupt vessel integrity. Various types of hematomas are described, including those under nails (subungual), in the brain (epidural, subdural, intracerebral), scalp, ears, nose, abdomen, and vagina. Hematomas are diagnosed through physical exams, blood tests, and imaging like CT or MRI. Treatment depends on location, symptoms, and severity, ranging from observation to surgical drainage procedures.

1. The heamatoma
presentation
By Ericanos Mubayiwa

2. What is a hematoma?
• Hematoma is generally defined as a collection of
blood outside of blood vessels.
•a solid swelling of clotted blood within the
tissues.

7. …about heamatoma
•hematomas are caused by an injury to the wall of a
blood vessel, prompting blood to seep out of the blood
vessel into the surrounding tissues.
• can result from an injury to any type of blood vessel
(artery, vein, or small capillary)
•hematoma usually describes bleeding which has more
or less clotted, whereas a hemorrhage signifies active,
ongoing bleeding.

8. Causes of hematoma…
• injury or trauma to blood vessels.
•This can happen as a result of any damage to blood vessels that
can disrupt the integrity of the blood vessel wall.
• Even minimal damage to a small blood vessel can result in a
hematoma.
•E.g, a hematoma under a nail (subungual hematoma) can
simply occur from minor trauma to the nail or from a light
stroke against an object.

9. …subungual hematoma

10. • severe traumas can cause more major hematomas. Falling
from a height or getting into a motor vehicle accident can
cause noticeably large bleeding under the skin or inside body
cavities (chest or abdomen).
•Other types of tissue injury causing a hematoma can result
from surgeries of any sort.
•Because these procedures damage nearby tissues and blood
vessels, often hematomas may form around the site of the
procedure.

11. Causes cont…
• Occasionally, a hematoma may happen spontaneously
without any identifiable cause or recollection of any
specific injury or trauma.
• Certain blood thinner medications can increase the
risk of hematoma formation,e.g, People who take
medications such as….

12. Causes cont…
•aspirin-containing products (like Alka Seltzer) may
develop a hematoma much easier and with less severe
injury to their blood vessels than other people.
• These medications impair the clotting ability of the
blood and therefore, minor damage to a blood vessel
becomes more difficult to repair, resulting in
hematoma formation.

13. Types of hematoma…
1.Epidural hematomas occur because of trauma,
often to the temple, where the middle meningeal artery
is located. Bleeding accumulates in the epidural space,
outside the 'dura' which is the lining of the brain.
Because of the way the dura is attached to the skull,
small hematomas can cause significant pressure and
brain injury.

14. Epidural hematoma
symptoms: back pain,
weakness, loss of bowel or
bladder control

15. Types cont…
2. Subdural hematomas also occur because
of trauma but the injury is usually to the veins in
the brain. This causes a slower leak of blood, which
enters the 'subdural' space below the dura.
Bleeding into the subdural space may be very slow,

16. Subdural hematoma
symptoms: headache,
neurologic problems
(weakness on one side,
difficulty speaking,
falling), confusion,
seizures

17. Types cont…
• 3. Intracerebral hematomas occur
within the brain tissue itself. Intracerebral
hematomas may be due to bleeding from
uncontrolled high blood pressure, an aneurysm
leak or rupture, trauma, tumor or stroke.

19. Types cont…
• 4. Scalp hematomas occur on the
outside of the skull and often can be felt as
a bump on the head. Because the injury is
to the skin and muscle layers outside of the
skull, the hematoma itself cannot press on
the brain

21. Types cont…
• 5. Aural or ear hematomas may
occur if an injury causes bleeding to the outside
helix or cartilage structure of the ear. Often
called boxer's, wrestler's ear

23. Types cont…
• 6 . Septal hematomas occur with nasal
trauma. A septal hematoma may form
associated with a broken nose

25. Types cont…
• 7. Subungual hematomas are the
result of rush injuries to the fingers or toes.
Bleeding occurs under the fingernail or toenail
and since it is trapped, pressure builds causing
pain.

26. Subungual hematoma
symptoms: nail pain,
nail weakness, nail
loss, disfiguring nail

27. Types cont…
• 8. subcutaneous hematomas.
These occur due to trauma or injuries to the
superficial blood vessels under the skin.
Individuals who take anti-coagulant medication
are more prone to subcutaneous hematomas.

29. Types cont…
• 9. Intra-abdominal hematomas ,
may be due to a variety of injuries or illnesses.
Hematomas may occur in solid organs such as
the liver, spleen, or kidney

30. symptoms: abdominal
pain, flank pain

31. Types cont…
• 10. Passing clots or hematomasis a
common complaint when women menstruate. Blood
can accumulate in the vagina as part of the normal
menses and instead of flowing out immediately, it may
form small blood clots. Passing blood clots after
delivering a baby is also relatively common. However,
vaginal bleeding and passing blood clots or hematomas
while pregnant is not normal and should be a sign to
seek medical attention.

32. How is a hematoma diagnosed?
• includes physical inspection along with a
comprehensive medical history
• tests including complete blood count (CBC),
coagulation panel, chemistry and metabolic
panel, and liver tests may be useful in evaluating
a person with a hematoma and to assess any
underlying conditions and evaluate whether
these are responsible for the hematoma
formation.

33. Diagonosis cont…
• Imaging studies are often needed to diagnose hematomas inside
the body.
• Computerized tomography (CT) of the head can reliably diagnose
subdural hematoma
• CT of the abdomen is a good test if a hematoma in the abdominal
cavity (intra-abdominal, hepatic, splenic, retroperitoneal,
peritoneal) is suspected
• Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is more reliable in detecting
epidural hematomas than a CT scan.

34. Treatment…
•For certain small and symptom-free hematomas no
medical treatment may be necessary.
•On the other hand, symptomatic hematomas or those
located in certain locations sometimes require
medical or surgical treatment.
•Surgical drainage is a common method of treatment
for certain hematomas. Presence of symptoms and
location of the hematoma generally dictate what type
of procedure is needed and how urgently it needs to
be done

35. Treatment cont…
•E.g, a subdural hematoma resulting in symptoms such as
headache, weakness, or confusion may require urgent
drainage by a neurosurgeon, Conversely, if a subdural
hematoma is thought to be symptom-free and chronic, it
may be left alone and monitored occasionally by imaging
studies (CT scan).
• a subungual hematoma with severe discomfort can be
drained through the nail to allow the blood to drain from the
space between the nail and the underlying tissue

36. Q
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37. Thank you…