title: [Headache caused by sexual activity].
abstract: Headache caused by sexual activity, or coital headache, is included in International headache classification (1988). The paper presents 19 cases (15 males, 4 females, mean age 34 years) examined by the authors. In 58% of the cases, headache developed before orgasm, in 26%--during orgasm and in 16%--after it. Duration of severe headache was from several to 15 min and of moderate one--up to 7 h. In total, disease lasted from 1 week to 8 years. Focal neurological symptoms were absent; magnetic resonance tomography did not reveal any changes in 68% of the patients, while the others had mild hydrocephalia. However, there was a tension of jugular, trapeziform and, less often, of temporal muscles, and, in some of the patients, an increase of arterial pressure. Among psychological features, hypochondria in men and emotional lability in women were detected. According to the clinico-pathophysiological results obtained, different pathogenetic mechanisms of coital headache were suggested: (1) disturbance of venous outflow and dysfunction of antinociceptive systems; (2) increase of arterial pressure combined with tonic tension of pericranial muscles on the background of vertebrogenic disturbances.
authors: E V
authors: EV
authors: Ekusheva
authors: E G
authors: EG
authors: Filatova
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003075:Coitus; D005260:Female; D006261:Headache / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male