Clusterheadaches.com Message Board


    
      
        Clusterheadaches.com Message Board
        (http://www.clusterheadaches.com/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.cgi)
      

        Cluster Headache Help and Support >> Cluster Headache Specific >> Potentially Lethal HA Disorder
        
(Message started by: UN solved on Dec 12^th, 2006, 3:05am)

Title: Potentially Lethal HA Disorder
Post by UN solved on Dec 12^th, 2006, 3:05am

Cluster: A Potentially Lethal Headache Disorder
John Rothrock, MD
From the University of South Alabama Headache Center

(Headache 2006;46:327)

A 56-year-old male with a history of chronic cluster that for 9 years had waxed and waned in clinical severity suffered spontaneous worsening of his headache disorder despite continued treatment with lithium, verapamil, methysergide, and topiramate. Injectable sumatriptan, previously quite effective in rapidly terminating individual headache attacks, began to provide less and less benefit.
Over a period of 2 weeks he became extremely depressed and sleep deprived, and during an acute nocturnal cluster episode he aimed a shotgun toward his symptomatic right eye and fired. Noncontrasted brain CT demonstrated multiple metallic pellets, present both extra and intracranially.
The patient survived and at discharge exhibits no significant neurologic deficit.

American Headache Society 2006

There is an X-ray picture with article ... but I'm too cheap to have a scanner to show you ::) Trust me ... this guys head is full of buckshot !!

Title: Re: Potentially Lethal HA Disorder
Post by E-Double on Dec 12^th, 2006, 7:06am

So it is now nicknamed "potential suicide headache"

PF wishes to you all!

PS how'd the <> clinic treat ya?

Title: Re: Potentially Lethal HA Disorder
Post by seasonalboomer on Dec 12^th, 2006, 9:20am

on 12/12/06 at 03:05:21, UN solved wrote:

[center][b]
The patient survived and at discharge exhibits no significant neurologic deficit.
[/color]

i can't figure out if i'm horrified by the desperation the guy must have felt, shocked that he survived, or have deepest sympathy for his family that had to go through this with him.There's the temptation to find a redneck joke in there somewhere but i'm just at a loss to go there.

my only hope is that "no significant neurologic deficit" will also include the possibility of PF days and nights. For him to survive there must be something he's got left to do, and I, for one, hope he's painfree to do so.

scott

Title: Re: Potentially Lethal HA Disorder
Post by chopmyheadoff on Dec 12^th, 2006, 9:54am

wow. :o

all i can say is im glad firearms are illegal in the uk.
or that might have been me in the paper before now

Title: Re: Potentially Lethal HA Disorder
Post by Bob_Johnson on Dec 12^th, 2006, 10:56am

The Old Timers here remember that Seymour Diamond, M.D., founder of the headache clinic in Chicago, coined the term "suicide headache" to describe CH.

Title: Re: Potentially Lethal HA Disorder
Post by sandie99 on Dec 12^th, 2006, 2:50pm

I have seen words "suicidal headache" added as one of ch's nicknames at some Finnish ch info websites.

Sanna

Title: Re: Potentially Lethal HA Disorder
Post by seasonalboomer on Dec 12^th, 2006, 3:07pm

on 12/12/06 at 14:50:06, sandie99 wrote:

I have seen words "suicidal headache" added as one of ch's nicknames at some Finnish ch info websites.

Sanna

of course in Finnish that is "suiiciidaahl heaadaacke" (a small attempt at making fun of finns)

Title: Re: Potentially Lethal HA Disorder
Post by erikadb on Dec 14^th, 2006, 5:53pm

Dr. Rothrock is the BEST! Before we moved to Japan I drove 3 hours to see him from my home, he really knows his headaches and was the first doctor who understood how much pain I was in and knew I wasn't "exagerating" it.

Title: Re: Potentially Lethal HA Disorder
Post by BarbaraD on Dec 16^th, 2006, 5:56am

No one can comprehend the pain of CH unless you go thru it. You can't exagerate it.

We've come a long way since this MB has been up and going, but we're NOT there yet. Still got a lot of educating to do.

Hugs BD

Title: Re: Potentially Lethal HA Disorder
Post by pubgirl on Dec 16^th, 2006, 9:26pm

PG always cites one CH sufferer who actually took his own eye out to try and get rid of the pain. Suffice to say it didn't work.
Kind of sums up how bad the pain is at its worst though :(

W

Title: Re: Potentially Lethal HA Disorder
Post by Linda_Howell on Dec 16^th, 2006, 10:11pm

Rhetorical question.

I see this as a definite set-back to us all. Could this have been a determining factor

Quote:

continued treatment with lithium, verapamil, methysergide, and topiramate. Injectable sumatriptan,

That's one hell of a lot of meds at one time and on a continuing basis. I see it as a set-back only because this guy had a whole lot of something else going on to do this, and Doctors reading this could and WILL make a deterination based on this as to what to prescribe for their patients.

Title: Re: Potentially Lethal HA Disorder
Post by UN solved on Dec 16^th, 2006, 11:42pm

Quote:

Injectable sumatriptan, previously quite effective in rapidly terminating individual headache attacks, began to provide less and less benefit.

I definately see this as a set back. Now I'm hoping that the above never happens to me ...or anyone else who depends on it to abort an attack !!

Everything went alright at <> E ... but the food still sucks !! No Don, the fingerpainting classes are for you !! And yes, the fruit trays are still @ 7 pm :P

UNsolved

Title: Re: Potentially Lethal HA Disorder
Post by dave..... on Dec 28^th, 2006, 8:40am

many nights i have sat on the edge of my bed........ cigarette in one hand....... my gun in the other....... as i press my gun to my right temple the cold steel brings enough relief not to do it..........

Title: Re: Potentially Lethal HA Disorder
Post by seasonalboomer on Dec 28^th, 2006, 9:40am

on 12/28/06 at 08:40:00, dave..... wrote:

for now I'll characterize that imagery as "cluster-noir"