Grief-induced reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome (RCVS)

Abstract

Stress is under-recognised as a potential causative factor for reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome (RCVS). Here we present a case of RCVS occurring during a time of extreme emotional duress. A 46-year-old female patient with medical history of bipolar disorder developed a severe headache during her father’s funeral. The following day she was discovered to have bilateral hemiparesis, aphasia, encephalopathy and was brought emergently to the hospital. Neuroimaging revealed a 33 mL left fronto-parietal haematoma with subarachnoid blood near the vertex bilaterally. She underwent craniotomy, haematoma evacuation and external ventricular drain placement. The patient received two cerebral angiograms, the first showing multifocal cerebral vasoconstriction and the second showing resolution of these changes. She improved significantly over the course of her 3-week hospitalisation and eventually made a full recovery, including the ability to speak fluently in six languages with no significant deficits other than hypersomnia; she now requires 10 hours of sleep each night as compared with 7 hours prior to her brain injury.

Reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome: literature review

“…It can affect any age group, including children [ 10 ] and young adolescents [ 7 ]. However, it primarily affects individuals between 20 and 50 years of age [ 1 , 2 , 9 – 11 , 13 , 20 , 38 , 39 ], with a peak around 42 years of age [ 7 , 40 ]. It is more common in women than in men, with incidence rates of 2.6:1 to 10:1 [ 1 , 5 – 7 , 10 , 12 , 17 , 20 , 28 , 41 – 43 ].…”

Fulminant Reversible Cerebral Vasoconstriction Syndrome: The Other Thunderclap Headache

“…DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.17352/2455-5282.000113study, men who present with RCVS are signifi cantly younger and symptoms are often associated with sexual activity[6]. The hallmark of the disease is thunderclap headache as well as reports of photophobia and phonophobia leading the physician to a diagnosis of migraine after cerebral hemorrhage has been ruled out[1,7]. The exact mechanism for this clinical syndrome is unknown, but susceptibility to developing RCVS may be infl uenced by genetics or a potential trigger[8].…”