I am a 77 year old man who regularly cycles two or three times a week for about 70 minutes. About 8/7, I collided with another cyclist who cut in front of me. I was found by the emts unconscious on the ground and taken to the local hospital. Initially I was coherent but rapidly deteriorated. I was diagnosed with subdural haematoma, and it took about two or three days for the bleeding to get under control. My taking baby aspirin daily may have been a factor. After about 5 days, they decided surgery wasn't going to be necessary, and I was trransferred to an extended care facility where I was given physical and occupational therapy. I continued to improve rapidly and after two weeks I was discharged.

The hospital added keppra, 500 mg, twice daily, to my regular prescriptions (lisinopril for blood pressure control and pain killers for chronic arthritis). Although my memory is now almost back to normal, and I can with some effort do complex mental tasks involving computer management, the side effects of the keppra cause me some difficulties.

I gather it will take a while before I will recover completely and that I will have to take the keppra for quite a while. I will see the neurosurgeon who originally treated me in a couple of weeks. I do feel better after light exercise, but since I need someone with me, there is a limit to how much I can do.

I would like advice from others who have been through something similar. In particular, advice about how to deal with the keppra and anything else that will help me deal with my mental state would be useful.

Also, from any cyclists, are there any helmets that they would recommend. My helmet was supposedly a good one. It cracked when it hit the ground. It probably prevented anything more serious from happening, but didn't prevent the bleeding. I've been told that all helmets are equally effective, but I wonder if that is really true.

Wow, you are one luck cyclist. Helmets are supposed to break upon impact. The breaking/deforming is a major component of the energy absorption. It is likely that your age contributed to your injury. If you are going to keep riding, I would find a helmet with the most coverage as possible. A skateboard/snowboard helmet may give you better protection, but not a lot more.

I am confused at to why you are on Keppra. It is an anti-seizure medication. Did you exhibit any seizure activity? Some such meds can slow your reactions and reduce you coordination and balance. I would be very careful riding in traffic while on Keppra. Maybe it is just a precaution until you have had longer to heal.

Regarding your mental state, you sound quite alert and functional. There are some online exercises you can do to gauge your functions. Luminosity.com has some free programs as does Positscience.com Google 'brain training' and try some of the exercises. Some are designed to measure driving skills. They can be good indicators of function.

Take care of yourself and go slow. A Second Impact can be deadly.

My best to you.