Contrecoup injuries occur on the opposite side of the skull due to rebound.

• A. At the point of impact
• B. On the opposite side of the skull due to rebound
• C. In the spinal cord
• D. In the neck muscles

Answer: (B)

Contrecoup injuries come from the brain’s inertia inside the skull after a rapid impact. When the head is struck, the brain lags briefly and bangs into the skull at the point of contact, causing a coup injury there. As the brain continues to move forward and then rebounds inside the skull, it can strike the opposite inner skull, producing a contrecoup injury on the side opposite the impact. This rebound mechanism explains why the injury is on the opposite side, not at the site of impact. The spinal cord or neck muscles aren’t involved in this intracranial contusion pattern, and an injury at the point of contact would be classified as coup, not contrecoup.