title: A 17-year-old male with pseudotumor cerebri secondary to performance-enhancing steroids triggering venous thrombosis in the brain.
abstract: This article is a case report of a 17-year-old male who presented with a headache and blurry vision. He subsequently was noted to have papilledema on a fundoscopic examination and an initial normal magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography of his head; his condition was, therefore, diagnosed as pseudotumor cerebri. A subsequent magnetic resonance venography of his head revealed venous thrombosis, and other investigations revealed an elevated factor VIII level as well as a mutation at the MTHFR locus, consistent with an elevated risk for hypercoagulability. In addition, he admitted to steroid usage for purposes of performance enhancement in baseball. The patient's condition eventually improved with acetazolamide and serial lumbar punctures. Steroids have been linked to predisposition to hypercoagulable states, but there are no reports identified by these authors that link performance-enhancing steroids with pseudotumor cerebri as a result of a coagulation dyscrasia.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Tulane University Hospital and Clinic, New Orleans, Louisiana 70047, USA. adesena@tulane.edu
authors.forename: Allen D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: DeSena
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Weimer
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D006261:Headache / Q000209:etiology; D006801:Humans; D007427:Intracranial Pressure; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D011559:Pseudotumor Cerebri / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000235:genetics; D013256:Steroids / Q000009:adverse effects*; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D020246:Venous Thrombosis / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000188:drug therapy; D014786:Vision Disorders / Q000209:etiology
chemical_list: D013256:Steroids