Intracranial venous thrombosis complicating oral contraception

Four days after the onset of a severe headache a 22-year-old woman who had been taking oral contraceptives for less than three weeks had a convulsion, followed by right hemiparesis. Other focal neurologic signs and evidence of raised intracranial pressure appeared, and she became comatose on the seventh day. A left craniotomy revealed extensive cerebral venous thrombosis. She died the next day. On postmortem examination extensive thrombosis of the superior sagittal sinus and draining cerebral veins, and multiple areas of cerebral hemorrhage and hemorrhagic infarction were seen. Some of the superficial cerebral veins showed focal necrosis of their walls, and the lateral lacunae of the superior sagittal sinus contained proliferating endothelial cells. The adrenal veins were also thrombosed. The significance of these findings is discussed. The literature on cerebrovascular complications of oral contraception, particularly cerebral venous thrombosis, is reviewed.