Prehospital Trauma Life Support (PHTLS) Practice Test

In the case of a patient struck in the back of the head, the most likely area of the brain to sustain a cerebral contusion is the occipital lobe. The occipital lobe is primarily responsible for processing visual information and is located at the posterior aspect of the skull. When an external force, such as a baseball bat, impacts the back of the head, it can produce a "coup-contrecoup" injury. This type of injury occurs when the brain is contused at the site of impact (the coup), as well as on the opposite side of the brain due to the sudden movement and subsequent rebound (the contrecoup).

In this specific situation, while it is possible for other lobes of the brain, such as the frontal or parietal lobe, to be affected in different circumstances or with different angles of impacts, the direct trauma at the back of the head primarily places the occipital lobe at risk for contusion. Therefore, the occipital lobe is the most appropriate selection.