Let us discuss post-coital headache also at times referred to as orgasmic headache. What is post coital headache? The history is quite typical. This is a throbbing and at times intense headache which comes on at or near the height of orgasm. During coitus as sexual excitement increases, the muscles around the shoulder and neck become tense. There is increased blood flow to the brain and either at the height of the orgasm or soon after the patient complains of throbbing and at times intense holocranial (whole head) headache.
Post coital headache is relatively benign and does not warrant any urgent treatment. As the sexual excitement weans off, the headache too subsides and usually by the time the patient reaches the ER to seek care, the headache is subsiding or already gone. There is though one entity which can mimic a post coital headache in its clinical presentation and which warrants urgent evaluation. This is the headache which occurs when an aneurysm ruptures in the brain. Classically an aneurysmal headache is described by the patient as the ” worst headache of my life“. It is intense, holocranial, throbbing and accompanied by a stiff neck (as you can see the clinical presentation may resemble that of a post coital headache). An aneurysmal bleed though may be accompanied by other neurological signs and symptoms depending upon where the bleed has occurred in the brain and patients are usually obtunded by the time they reach the hospital. An aneurysmal bleed is a medical emergency and needs to be evaluated and treated urgently. Usually a special kind of scan is carried out to localize the site of the aneurysm and then either the aneurysm is coiled or clipped to secure it. I shall discuss the management of aneurysms in a separate post.
Nitin Sethi, MD
Braindisease's Weblog 