A mother, shaken after almost losing her son, is sharing an important message about bike safety.
Jaden, like most kids, loves playing outside with his friends, and he’s used to getting some bumps and bruises along the way.
In March, Jaden, then 10 years old, was riding his bike with friends when he fell off, scraping his elbow and knee. He wasn’t wearing a helmet at the time.
He was back on his feet and playing again in no time.
"When he was asked if anything else hurt, his only complaints were his elbow and knee," wrote Tiffany Rivera. "He showed no signs of trauma and continued about his day."
Two days later, his mother noticed something was wrong: Hee was very lethargic and didn’t want to get out of bed.
She noticed swelling around his temple and took him to the hospital. On the way there, he started vomiting.
As soon as they arrived at Saint Mary’s Children’s Hospital in West Palm Beach, Florida, doctors sent him in for a CT scan.
“The diagnosis was right temporal fracture of the skull and right temporal hematoma,” wrote Rivera. “The doctors explained to me that my son (needed) emergency surgery…”
If doctors didn’t operate within the hour, Rivera would lose her son. He only had a 50/50 chance of survival.
After 2 1/2 hours, doctors told Rivera the surgery was a success and that it was a miracle he survived. Most kids don’t survive past the surgery.
On April 5, Jaden celebrated his 11th birthday. His mom says he has almost no permanent damage or disability.
“I am telling you this in hopes to raise awareness for all children and adults why you need to wear a helmet,” wrote Rivera. “This can happen to anyone!”
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