Demonstration of frontal hypoperfusion in benign exertional headache by technetium-99m-HMPAO SPECT

Ba̧oglu T., Özbenli T., Bernay I., Şahin M., Onur A., Demirçali A. E., ...More

Journal of Nuclear Medicine, vol.37, no.7, pp.1172-1174, 1996 (Scopus) identifier identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Volume: 37 Issue: 7
  • Publication Date: 1996
  • Journal Name: Journal of Nuclear Medicine
  • Journal Indexes: Scopus
  • Page Numbers: pp.1172-1174
  • Keywords: benign exertional headache, SPECT, technetium-99m-HMPAO
  • Ondokuz Mayıs University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

We present a case of benign exertional headache (BEH) in a 15-yr-old boy. The patient suffered from exclusively exercise-induced headaches with migraine-like accompanying symptoms. No pathology could be detected by routine cardiovascular or neurological examinations by CT. The postexercise 99mTc-HMPAO brain SPECT performed during the provoked headache attack showed asymmetric bifrontal hypoperfusion. A second 99m-c-HMPAO study during a symptom-free phase under resting conditions was normal. The detection of impaired regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) by 99mTc-HMPAO brain SPECT indicates a perfusion-related pathology in this type of headache. Analysis of rCBF with 99mTc-HMPAO in larger studies could be helpful in the clarification of BEH pathogenesis.