Who's more likely to say, "Sorry honey, I have a headache?" A man or a woman?
A woman, you guessed? Wrong.
Sharp headache nearing orgasm Neurologists in Germany found that men were three times more likely to suffer from sexual headaches - usually a sharp, severe pain that comes on suddenly when the person is nearing orgasm.
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"It's not that common, but it does occur and it's quite distressing to those who have them," says Dr Arthur Elkind, director of the Elkind Headache Centre in Mount Vernon, NY.
"If every time you have sex you get a terrible headache, it can really interfere with your life."
Releasing trigger chemicals Researchers aren't sure about the precise cause of the headaches, although they're probably a type of "exertion" headache, in which the pain comes on during vigorous physical activity, Elkind says.
Blood-vessel changes in the brain during physical activity could be to blame, says Elkind, an assistant clinical professor of medicine at New York Medical College in Valhalla, NY.
During sex (or vigorous exercise), heart rate increases, blood pressure increases and the body releases catecholamines, chemicals that increase metabolic activity, Elkind says.
"It's possible that these chemicals could act as a trigger on the blood vessels in susceptible persons, or that the chemicals could act on certain sensitive areas of the brain to trigger a migraine," Elkind says.
Men who get sexual headaches, technically called "orgasmic cephalalgia," also tend to suffer from migraines, according to the new study, which was presented at the recent European Federation of Neurological Societies Congress in Vienna, Austria.
Early twenties and mid-thirties The German researchers examined 35 men and 12 women who had sexual headaches. They did tests to rule out other, more serious causes of the headaches, including bleeding in the brain, stroke or tumour.
They found two peaks in the ages at which men were at their highest risk of getting the headaches - 20 to 24 and 35 to 44.
For most men, the pain came on suddenly and severely, says study author Dr Achim Frese, of the University of Munster in Germany. A few suffered from a dull, throbbing headache that increased gradually as they came closer to orgasm.
Slow down! What can a sexual headache sufferer do?
If you get them frequently, see a doctor to rule out a more serious condition, Elkind says.
About half of the people in the German study said they could avoid some headache attacks by slowing down their sexual activity and increasing their excitement more gradually.
Some patients were helped by indomethacin, a painkiller and anti-inflammatory drug first developed for arthritis that's now used to treat headaches. Others had success with beta blockers, used to treat migraines.
Beta blockers have to be taken for at least several days before they begin to work, Elkind says.
For many people, the headaches go away on their own. They suffer several attacks, and then the headaches never return, Elkind says.
"From the patients' point of view, it gives clear information about the benign prognosis of the disorder and demonstrates that it is treatable," Frese says. – (HealthScout News)
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