Signs of Shaken Baby Syndrome may vary from mild to severe. The onset of symptoms is immediate; however, in many cases there is no external sign of injury.

 

Symptoms of Shaken Baby Syndrome that you may see:

• Lack of energy, sluggish

• Extreme irritability, annoyed, impatient

• Inability to suck or swallow

• Decreased appetite, not feeding like usual

• Vomiting, more than just spitting up after eating

• Difficulty breathing or short shallow breaths

• Rigidity or posturing, including abnormal bending of the arms, clenched fists, extended legs, severe arching of the back, or head thrown backwards

• Inability of eyes to focus or unequal size of pupils

• Seizures, may lose consciousness and experience convulsions

• Coma, deep and prolonged unconsciousness

 

 

Injuries your pediatrician may find:

• Intracranial bleeding, bleeding within the skull

• Cerebral edema, excess accumulation of water in brain

• Retinal hemorrhages, bleeding of blood vessels in the retina or membrane in the back of the eye

• Rib fractures, break or fracture in one or more of the bones making up the rib cage

• Fractures of long bones, break or fracture in the femur, tibia, or other long bones

• Skull fractures, break or fracture in the skull

 

 

Long-term effects may include:

• Severe brain injury or damage

• Learning disabilities and/or behavior disorders

• Impaired motor or cognitive skills

• Visual impairment or any kind of vision loss

• Paralysis or loss of muscle function for one or more muscle groups

• Seizure disorder, where the brain’s activity is periodically disturbed and it results in some degree of temporary brain dysfunction

• Death