SUNCT syndrome: A cohort of 15 Portuguese patients

Abstract

Our case series is among the largest reported, with findings similar to others already published, but the first to report epistaxis during SUNCT attack and response to eslicarbazepine.

Assessment of efficacy and safety of eslicarbazepine acetate for the treatment of trigeminal neuralgia

“…Conversely, although CBZ and OXC are routinely used for the treatment of neuropathic pain, ESL has scarcely been explored in this area (Alcántara Montero and Sánchez Carnerero, ). A Spanish group (Garcia‐Escrivà et al., ) studied ESL for the treatment of painful diabetic neuropathy; furthermore, a Portuguese study reported a positive response to ESL in a case of short‐lasting unilateral neuralgiform headache attacks with conjunctival injection and tearing (SUNCT) (Cação et al., ). Currently, there are no studies that evaluate ESL for the treatment of TN in humans.…”

Tics in TACs: A Step into an Avalanche? Systematic Literature Review and Conclusions

“…A refractory period was absent in the vast majority of patients. Cacao et al reported similar clinical findings except for a lower frequency of attacks and a possible lack of male preponderance. In very rare cases, pain may be extratrigeminal or bilateral .…”

“…In only one patient, however, the neurovascular contact was exclusively ipsilateral to the pain. In the series by Cacao et al, MRI revealed “ipsilateral trigeminal neurovascular contact” in four of 15 patients. In three patients with neurovascular contact and a diagnosis of SUNCT, the authors described a preserved refractory period .…”

“…Cohen et al describe white matter lesions in MRI in three patients and space‐occupying lesions not related to SUNCT in two cases . In the series of 15 patients from Portugal, the authors mention unspecific white matter changes, cavernous sinus thrombosis associated with an arteriovenous malformation, and a carotid‐cavernous sinus fistula in one patient each, but they do not comment on the causal relation between these findings and SUNCT.…”

“…The first case of SUNA was an 11‐year‐old girl . Larger case series of SUNCT/SUNA included a total of 91 patients . Cohen et al reported a male to female ratio of 1.5 to 1 and identified three types of attacks, stabs, groups of stabs, and saw‐tooth attacks showing an average duration of 58, 396, and 1160 seconds.…”