[Sexual intercourse as a trigger of transient global amnesia]

Transient global amnesia (TGA) is characterised by impairment of anterograde memory and, to a certain extent, retrograde memory, which is associated with mild temporal and spatial disorientation that is completely re-established after a few hours. There are different hypotheses about its pathogenesis, including theories about a possible epileptic, migrainous or ischaemic foundation or its being due to venous congestion in the hippocampuses, although the cause remains unknown. In the same way, many precipitating factors have been related to this disorder, including pain, anxiety, changes in temperature, exercise, Valsalva manoeuvres, diagnostic testing, interventionism and long-distance flights. Sexual intercourse has also been related to this condition, although how it can exert an influence is not known and few cases have been reported in the literature to date.

Six patients who suffered from signs and symptoms of TGA that were clearly related to a sexual relationship, in whom both the neurological examination and the complementary tests that were performed were completely normal. We also gather the evidence in favour and against the association between intercourse and this condition.

Although the pathophysiological mechanisms that link sexual intercourse with TGA are unknown, the relation between them appears increasingly more often in the literature. We draw attention to the need to take sexual activity into account as a possible precipitating factor in patients suffering from this disorder.