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Emergency Medicine & First Aid vocabulary · Emergency Assessment (ABC)

Come round

Meaning in emergency medicine & first aid, with examples

/ˌkʌm ˈraʊnd/phrasal verbCommon term

In emergency medicine & first aid, come round means: To become conscious again after fainting, a seizure, an injury or an anesthetic.

In Turkish: kendine gelmek, ayılmak

How it is used

Mostly British; Americans say 'come around' or 'come to'. Crews ask how long it took the person to come round and whether they were confused afterwards, because this helps separate a simple faint from a seizure or a head injury.

Example sentences

  1. He's coming round now, he's opening his eyes.

  2. How long did it take her to come round?

Common collocations

  • come round quickly
  • slowly come round
  • come round after a faint
  • pass outTo become unconscious for a short time, for example from heat, pain, fear or standing up too quickly; an informal way of saying faint.
  • unconsciousNot awake and not aware of what is happening, so that the person cannot respond normally to voices or touch.
  • seizureA sudden burst of abnormal electrical activity in the brain that can cause shaking, stiffness, staring or a short loss of consciousness.
  • collapseTo fall down suddenly because of illness or weakness, often becoming unconscious; it is also used as a noun for the event.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Emergency Assessment (ABC)

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This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not medical advice.