Concussion in Spanish

What it means

A concussion is a type of brain injury that involves a short loss of normal brain function. It happens when a hit to the head or body causes the head and brain to move rapidly back and forth; this sudden movement can cause the brain to bounce around or twist in the skull. The MedlinePlus encyclopedia describes a concussion as a mild traumatic brain injury (TBI). Symptoms may not start right away and may include a headache or neck pain, nausea, ringing in the ears, dizziness, or tiredness. The encyclopedia also lists emergency symptoms of a more severe TBI, such as confusion that does not go away and repeated vomiting; emergency signs need urgent care (call 911 in the U.S.).

Spanish term: Conmoción Cerebral
Gender and article: feminine: la conmoción cerebral
Pronunciation: kohn-moh-SYOHN seh-reh-BRAHL

Other Spanish terms	Where it is used	Note
conmoción	General	Short form listed first among the alternative names in the MedlinePlus en español encyclopedia article on lesión cerebral traumática.
TBI leve	General	The MedlinePlus en español encyclopedia keeps the English abbreviation TBI and says a mild TBI is also called conmoción cerebral.

Conmoción cerebral is the term MedlinePlus en español uses for concussion, and it is feminine: una conmoción cerebral, las conmociones cerebrales. Its encyclopedia article on lesión cerebral traumática lists the short form conmoción among the alternative names. The same article writes traumatic brain injury as lesión cerebral traumática but keeps the English abbreviation TBI, explaining it with por sus siglas en inglés, and says that a TBI leve is also called a conmoción cerebral.

MedlinePlus en español describes a concussion as a type of lesión cerebral and notes that people sometimes call it a lesión cerebral "menor". Words that appear alongside it are pérdida del conocimiento (loss of consciousness), zumbidos en los oídos (ringing in the ears), mareos (dizziness), examen neurológico (neurological exam), tomografía computarizada (CT scan), and fracturas del cráneo (skull fractures). The encyclopedia uses lucidez mental for alertness and convulsiones for seizures.

Phrases for an appointment

What a patient or a clinician might say, in English and Spanish:

Who	English	Spanish
Patient	I hit my head when I fell off my bike yesterday.	Ayer me golpeé la cabeza cuando me caí de la bicicleta.
Clinician	Did you lose consciousness, even for a few seconds?	¿Perdió el conocimiento, aunque fuera por unos segundos?
Patient	I don't think so, but I don't remember the fall very well.	Creo que no, pero no recuerdo muy bien la caída.
Clinician	Do you have a headache, nausea, dizziness, or ringing in your ears?	¿Tiene dolor de cabeza, náuseas, mareos o zumbidos en los oídos?
Patient	I have a headache, and bright light bothers me.	Me duele la cabeza y me molesta la luz fuerte.
Clinician	I am going to check your vision, balance, coordination, and reflexes.	Voy a revisarle la visión, el equilibrio, la coordinación y los reflejos.
Patient	My son had a concussion playing soccer. When can he go back to school and sports?	Mi hijo tuvo una conmoción cerebral jugando al fútbol. ¿Cuándo puede volver a la escuela y a los deportes?
Clinician	If there is a seizure, repeated vomiting, or confusion that does not go away, call 911 right away.	Si hay una convulsión, vómitos repetidos o confusión que no desaparece, llame al 911 de inmediato.

In 9 languages

Language	Term
English	Concussion
Spanish (Español)	Conmoción Cerebral
Chinese (中文)	腦震盪
Korean (한국어)	뇌진탕
Vietnamese (Tiếng Việt)	Chấn động não
Filipino (Tagalog)	Concussion
Portuguese (Português)	Concussão
Thai (ภาษาไทย)	สมองกระทบกระเทือน
Japanese (日本語)	脳震盪

Where you'll see it

chartEOBreferralmedical record

Related ICD-10-CM category

ICD-10-CM code: S06 → Intracranial injury

Related terms

Your right to an interpreter in the United States

If English is not your primary language and you have difficulty communicating in English, you may need an interpreter or a translated document when you visit a doctor or dentist, go to the emergency room or pick up a prescription. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights states that two federal laws, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act, require programs that receive its funding to provide language access services free of charge.

You can ask when you make the appointment or at the front desk: "I need an interpreter, please." «Necesito un intérprete, por favor.»

More terms: Brain and nerves

All terms in this area: Brain and nerves — Cerebro y nervios

Sources

This page is a language reference. It is not medical advice.