Postural headache in the presence of cerebral venous sinus thrombosis

Ludmil Todorov1, Charles E Laurito, David E Schwartz

  • 1Department of Anesthesiology, University of Illinois at Chicago.

Anesthesia and Analgesia
|October 26, 2005
PubMed

Cerebral venous sinus thrombosis (CVST) can present with a headache similar to that after a dural puncture. We report on a patient who developed postural headache after epidural anesthesia for delivery. The headache became more intense during the following 6 days, and the patient had a tonic clonic seizure. A magnetic resonance angiogram demonstrated CSVT, and anticoagulation therapy was started, with resolution of the symptoms over 2 wk. Any postdural-puncture headache that loses its positional character, becomes persistent, or does not improve with a properly performed blood patch should raise the suspicion of CVST.

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