My DD15 lost her vision and then passed out

[Shellers]

I'm wondering how common it is to have a teenager pass out? Has anyone experienced anything like this? Or does anyone have any idea what this could be?

 

My DD15 lost her vision and then passed out. It took at least 20 minutes for her to come to and know what was going on.

 

Early Saturday morning, we went to buy some firewood. The kids and DH loaded two pickups with firewood. They finished around 10 am or so, it wasn't hot. My DD was a little bit sweaty, but didn't feel hot. The kids and DH worked at a very leisurely pace, we weren't in a hurry.

 

While her dad finished loading the last of the firewood, DD15 was walking around for about 10 minutes, and in that time, she drank about half a bottle of water (it wasn't cold water). She was playing around with her siblings. She told me her eyes were a little funny. She was wearing sunglasses, but I thought maybe she needed a hat (she's a redhead), so I went to my truck and got her a hat. When I was walking back to her (she was leaning on her dad's truck), she said, "Mom, I can't see".

 

I was really confused and rushed to her. Her pupils were HUGE. She told me she couldn't see anything. Then she sort of slumped on the truck hood and I caught her. I yelled out for my DH to come to me, but he was busy BSing with the owner of the wood. I then yelled out, "Rod, I'm having a medical emergency." Then our DD went completely limp, her head flopped forward, and she couldn't stand up, she was out. My DH ran over and helped me hold her up. Her eyes were open but it was obvious she wasn't conscious, like I said her head was kinda flopping around.

 

My DH had me run and get my truck (his truck is lifted and there's no way we could have put her in his truck). I backed the truck in close and then he kind of lifted her into the truck (she was able to help out a little with her legs). When we were putting her in the truck she still couldn't see and couldn't hold her head up.

 

In the truck, she had no control over her body. Her pupils were still HUGE, she couldn't see, her fingers on both hands were out straight (she couldn't bend them), she was hyperventilating, and couldn't breath. I freaked out.

 

The owner of the firewood is cop. He called 911. It took the ambulance at least 10 minutes to show up. In that time, my DD's vision came and went (mostly gone), she couldn't hold up her head but she was conscious. The paramedics did a blood glucose test, and her blood sugars were normal. After about 10 minutes of the paramedics being there, my DD came back. She knew what was going on, she slowed down her breathing and she seemed fine.

 

I ended up driving her to the nearest hospital ER. At the hospital, all her blood tests came back normal. The EKG showed her heart is taking extra beats (Premature Supraventricular Beats). The ER doctor said this isn't uncommon in adults, but not so normal in kids her age. He said this condition should not have caused what happened.

 

I took her to the doctor yesterday, and he ordered a 24 hour Holter monitor and a stress echo test. They referred her to a Stanford Pediatric Cardiologist. I'm waiting for that office to call me and make an her an appointment.

 

Her doctor said this could be something that will never be explained. It could be a heart valve issue. Or it could be hormones. He said she's growing so much and maybe her heart hasn't caught up? He also mentioned that it could have been a migraine without a headache.

 

More random info that probably has nothing to do with what happened:

 

 

• My DD was on her period when this happened but she's not a heavy bleeder
  
• The night before this happened, she was sitting on the couch. She stood up, walked about 20' and then I saw her grab the wall, I asked her what was wrong, she said she felt a little dizzy.
  
• My DD has never been sick, she's the healthiest kid I know. She's never even had a headache.
  
• She's 5'10" and average weight
  
• She doesn't drink soda, energy drinks, or coffee. She only drinks water (lots of water) and iced tea.
  
• She ate breakfast that morning. She had a pizza with a corn tortilla for the crust and a banana.
  

[Chris in VA]

I think it's good to get it checked out.

 

I will say, tho, that I did this a few times (couldn't see, then nearly fainted) right before my period would start, once even in a mall. Never figured it out (but then, my parents didn't see it as anything worth investigating). I did have pretty low blood pressure, but not anything unusual.

 

Hope it all checks out. :grouphug:

[plansrme]

You may want to google ocular migraine. I do not know whether it would cause the other symptoms, but my husband had a sudden and short-lived loss of sight once about 15 years ago, and this was his diagnosis. It has never happened since. There was no pain in his case, either--we were just having a normal dinner.

 

 

Terri

[hsingscrapper]

I had a friend in job corps who had a form of epilepsy with seizures similar to that.

 

Her face would go blank *and* ghost white. She wouldn't flop around but acted more like a misdirected windup toy. Prior to seeing her first seizure, I asked her the best way to care for her if I had to.

 

I would check with a neurologist to see if it may be a teen-onset epilepsy.

[Guest submarines]

DD10 had a similar thing happen to her today. I wasn't with her, so I have no idea bout her pupils. She said that her vision blackened, and she fell down, but could still hear my friend talking to her, asking her to sit, and giving her water. She was back to normal within minutes, though.

 

I remember the same thing happened to me when I was 12. My friend said that the same thing happened to her when she was about the same age.

 

I didn't take DD to see a doctor, but if her episode lasted over 5 minutes, I would've. :grouphug:

[swellmomma]

Scary!

 

Once when I was a teen I was strolling in the mall with my mom. I suddenly lost my sight, get very light headed, felt like my head was tight and fuzzy, heart was racing like mad, I was shaking all over. I never passed out but thought I was going to. I was terrified. It took about 25 minutes for my body to be completely back to normal enough for us to walk out of the mall. My mom just sat with me on the bench, she was not one to call for medical help.

 

Anyway we went to see the dr afterwards and he never found a cause and it has never happened again. THat was 20 years ago. The only time I have actually passed out was when I was pregnant with my oldest.

 

It was a scary moment for sure, scary enough that 20 years later I can still feel how it felt to be virtually vibrating and blind.

 

I hope you get some answers and that this never happens to your dd again.

[marbel]

Also check out vasovagal response or vasovagal episode.

 

My daughter lost her vision briefly and passed out once. She had a fever at the time. The doc said she likely had a blood pressure drop from being dehydrated. It was very scary - though much less scary than what happened to your daughter! She was without vision for only a few minutes - almost as soon as she was lying down it began to come back.

 

:grouphug: Scary. Hope you find it is something simple. Most likely it is!

[Kathryn]

Look up neurally mediated hypotension. I had the same thing happen to me several times as a teen before my mother figured it out and doctors confirmed it using the tilt table test.

 

ETA: this page is the text of an excellent brochure on NMH from Johns Hopkins: http://brendashue.tripod.com/nmh2.html

Edited September 18, 2012 by kebg11

[MamaJ & BabyK]

If those test come back normal take her to the chiropractor! I had my vision go out, tachycardia, and pass out. I had the WHOLE medical workup and they never found the problem. I went to the chiropractor and was asked if I had those symptoms :001_huh: My atlas bone was very out of whack along with a few others. After a few adjustments I was back to normal. Praying for answers :grouphug::grouphug:

[Cindy in FL.]

This happened to my ds15 about a year ago. He was ushering at church and He looked funny, started stumbling and holding on to the wall, then I heard him saying he couldn't see. He fell into a seat and his pupils were huge. I was afraid something had gone on in his brain. Dh got him to the car and to the ER quickly. He checked out ok there, though his blood pressure and heart rate were low.

 

We took him to his ped, who was not too concerned. Said it was not unusual in tees. Did get him an appt. with a cardiologist. In the mean time said drink Gatorade, sit/get up slowly, and no long hot showers.

 

Cardio did an EKG and an echo and said everything was fine. He's had no problem since, though we do continue with the Gatorade, etc.

 

Hope all is well with your dd!

 

Cindy

[Leanna Tomlinson]

My dd 11 had a string of fainting spells several weeks ago. One time she, too, shouted that she couldn't see before she passed out. I was able to rule out blood sugar issues with my glucometer. The pediatrician tested her Blood Pressure while lying down and then standing. Lying down, her blood pressure was fairly low, when she would stand it would drop dramatically. The ped. diagnosed orthostatic hypotension. She said it was probably tied to major hormonal changes and a growth spurt.

 

The pediatrician recommended that dd increase her calories and especially salt intake. She also wanted her to drink an electrolyte drink before any sports activity.

 

All of that happened several weeks ago. Since then, dd has been experiencing signs of migraines. I think there may be a correlation between the migraines and the hormonal changes. The low blood pressure is what caused the fainting.

[BigMamaBird]

I passed out when I was 16 and it sounded just like your dd. My vision got fuzzy then tunnled. I felt woozy and next thing I know I'm coming to on the floor. I was overheated, tired and rather anxious at the time so that could have contributed. I also experienced crazy, massive growth spurts at the time, so maybe my body adjusting to blood flow or pressure, who knows? I never had any similar episodes since and no complications from the incident.

[magnificent_baby]

I would also be getting a neurology appointment as soon as possible. She should have a head CT and/or MRI/MRA. That is something that can be ordered by her primary care doctor while you are waiting for an appointment.

 

I would not let this go, those are very serious symptoms, especially the dilated pupils and being unconscious for 20 minutes.

[Catwoman]

I would also be getting a neurology appointment as soon as possible. She should have a head CT and/or MRI/MRA. That is something that can be ordered by her primary care doctor while you are waiting for an appointment.

 

I would not let this go, those are very serious symptoms, especially the dilated pupils and being unconscious for 20 minutes.

 

:iagree:

 

I hope it turns out to be nothing, but I'm glad to hear that you are taking it seriously and getting her thoroughly checked out, because those symptoms are SCARY. :grouphug::grouphug::grouphug:

[Tap]

DD13 passed out last year and ended up with a referral to a pediatric cardiologist who specializes in 'fainting'. He preformed an echo cardiogram and did some basic neurological tests. She was given a clean bill of health and a diagnosis of Vasovagle syncope.

[momto10blessings]

I would take her to a neurologist.

 

It MAY just be teenaged hormones- I know a lot of women who passed out once or twice as teens.

 

My sister has had a couple Transient Ischemic Attacks (TIA) that lasted about 15 minutes and her symptoms were similar

[abbeyej]

DD13 passed out last year and ended up with a referral to a pediatric cardiologist who specializes in 'fainting'. He preformed an echo cardiogram and did some basic neurological tests. She was given a clean bill of health and a diagnosis of Vasovagle syncope.

 

Ds also has vasovagal episodes. Two factors usually seem to be at play: electrolyte imbalance and minor shock

 

We've discovered that when he sweats, he loses disproportionately more sodium than most people, so rehydrating with water alone can be a problem for him. He really needs to eat or drink something with *salt* in it any time he's very active or overheated along with taking in extra water. This can last for *days* or the problem can build up over time, so it's not like he gets dehydrated and passes out immediately. It might happen a day or so later, after he's drunk lots and lots of water but not gotten enough salt to make up for what he has lost.

 

That sets him up for this to happen. Add in a minor shock (like seeing a bit of his own blood), and down he goes.

 

We try to combat this by keeping him well-hydrated and feeding him sodium-rich foods. During the summer, especially if he's going to be doing any outdoor activity, he usually drinks a cup of miso soup with breakfast. Last time he went to Boy Scout camp, he took a bag full of individual packets of organic soy sauce. When I send him to ballet (he had 4.5 hours of rehearsal and class today), I pack him salty rice crackers, olives, cheese, salami, etc along with his water bottle. I also keep electrolyte packets (with sodium -- some don't have it) on hand for him to add to water.

 

It's been over a year since he's had an episode, and I think that's because we have a good handle on preventing them now.

 

We've had him checked out. He's not having seizures. There's no heart involvement. His blood sugar is normal during these events. I assume your doctors will do all of that for you, since those are the most obvious things to rule out. If she's just having episodes of vasovagal syncope, sometimes those can look a lot like seizures and be pretty scary. I'm assured that they're not dangerous -- other than the slight chance of falling (though usually they know they're going down when it happens -- the tunnel vision hits far enough in advance).

[Scuff]

DD10 had a similar thing happen to her today. I wasn't with her, so I have no idea bout her pupils. She said that her vision blackened, and she fell down, but could still hear my friend talking to her, asking her to sit, and giving her water. She was back to normal within minutes, though.

 

I remember the same thing happened to me when I was 12. My friend said that the same thing happened to her when she was about the same age.

 

I didn't take DD to see a doctor, but if her episode lasted over 5 minutes, I would've. :grouphug:

 

I had the same thing happen when I was 9, except I also threw up and was weak for a couple hours. They didn't really know what it was, but put me back on meds and called it epilepsy. (I had had seisures when I was very young, but had been seisure free for hears.)

[msjones]

I'm a bit of a fainter. It was worse in my late teens and early twenties. I have low blood pressure.

 

I went in for a series of tests, and it was just consistently low blood pressure. I sure did worry my poor mom, though.

[Ottakee]

My first thought was a seizure. Did they do an EEG today? If not, I would ask for a neurology consult and have the doctor order an EEG to be done in the mean time.

[Tracy]

I have a tendency to faint a lot, and that is exactly how it happens to me. But I have never been out for that long. You definitely need to get it checked out.

[freeindeed]

My dd11 did that & it turns out she was having seizures. Not wanting to scare you, but I'd take your dd to a neurologist. :grouphug:

[Hope in God]

I think it's good to get it checked out.

 

I will say, tho, that I did this a few times (couldn't see, then nearly fainted) right before my period would start, once even in a mall. Never figured it out (but then, my parents didn't see it as anything worth investigating). I did have pretty low blood pressure, but not anything unusual.

 

Hope it all checks out. :grouphug:

 

I would also get it checked out but just as Chris in VA I had some similar episodes as a teenager when I had my period though nothing ever lasting that long. I also had low blood pressure.

 

Still, do get it checked out fully.

[mom4him]

I'm wondering how common it is to have a teenager pass out? Has anyone experienced anything like this? Or does anyone have any idea what this could be?

 

My DD15 lost her vision and then passed out. It took at least 20 minutes for her to come to and know what was going on.

 

Early Saturday morning, we went to buy some firewood. The kids and DH loaded two pickups with firewood. They finished around 10 am or so, it wasn't hot. My DD was a little bit sweaty, but didn't feel hot. The kids and DH worked at a very leisurely pace, we weren't in a hurry.

 

While her dad finished loading the last of the firewood, DD15 was walking around for about 10 minutes, and in that time, she drank about half a bottle of water (it wasn't cold water). She was playing around with her siblings. She told me her eyes were a little funny. She was wearing sunglasses, but I thought maybe she needed a hat (she's a redhead), so I went to my truck and got her a hat. When I was walking back to her (she was leaning on her dad's truck), she said, "Mom, I can't see".

 

I was really confused and rushed to her. Her pupils were HUGE. She told me she couldn't see anything. Then she sort of slumped on the truck hood and I caught her. I yelled out for my DH to come to me, but he was busy BSing with the owner of the wood. I then yelled out, "Rod, I'm having a medical emergency." Then our DD went completely limp, her head flopped forward, and she couldn't stand up, she was out. My DH ran over and helped me hold her up. Her eyes were open but it was obvious she wasn't conscious, like I said her head was kinda flopping around.

 

My DH had me run and get my truck (his truck is lifted and there's no way we could have put her in his truck). I backed the truck in close and then he kind of lifted her into the truck (she was able to help out a little with her legs). When we were putting her in the truck she still couldn't see and couldn't hold her head up.

 

In the truck, she had no control over her body. Her pupils were still HUGE, she couldn't see, her fingers on both hands were out straight (she couldn't bend them), she was hyperventilating, and couldn't breath. I freaked out.

 

The owner of the firewood is cop. He called 911. It took the ambulance at least 10 minutes to show up. In that time, my DD's vision came and went (mostly gone), she couldn't hold up her head but she was conscious. The paramedics did a blood glucose test, and her blood sugars were normal. After about 10 minutes of the paramedics being there, my DD came back. She knew what was going on, she slowed down her breathing and she seemed fine.

 

I ended up driving her to the nearest hospital ER. At the hospital, all her blood tests came back normal. The EKG showed her heart is taking extra beats (Premature Supraventricular Beats). The ER doctor said this isn't uncommon in adults, but not so normal in kids her age. He said this condition should not have caused what happened.

 

I took her to the doctor yesterday, and he ordered a 24 hour Holter monitor and a stress echo test. They referred her to a Stanford Pediatric Cardiologist. I'm waiting for that office to call me and make an her an appointment.

 

Her doctor said this could be something that will never be explained. It could be a heart valve issue. Or it could be hormones. He said she's growing so much and maybe her heart hasn't caught up? He also mentioned that it could have been a migraine without a headache.

 

More random info that probably has nothing to do with what happened:

 

 

• My DD was on her period when this happened but she's not a heavy bleeder
  
• The night before this happened, she was sitting on the couch. She stood up, walked about 20' and then I saw her grab the wall, I asked her what was wrong, she said she felt a little dizzy.
  
• My DD has never been sick, she's the healthiest kid I know. She's never even had a headache.
  
• She's 5'10" and average weight
  
• She doesn't drink soda, energy drinks, or coffee. She only drinks water (lots of water) and iced tea.
  
• She ate breakfast that morning. She had a pizza with a corn tortilla for the crust and a banana.
  

 

I would have her checked out for seizures. They can come/look so many different ways. I had always thought that you loose control of bowl/bladder but my dh's dr said that is something they look for but he has seen about 1000 cases that this wasn't the case.

 

Sleep deprived eeg will rule it in or out. Not fun but worth it to know.

[itsheresomewhere]

Ask for a EEG. I prefer the take home version. You go to either the neurologist office or the hospital, they put it on you and you go home. 48-72 hour ones are normal for take homes. DS's neuro likes these ones better to so she can see if it is a certain activity or way that might be triggering them that the hospital ones can't alway reproduce. Seizures don't always look like what you think.