Volume 28, Issue 3 pp. 257-263

Epicrania fugax: an ultrabrief paroxysmal epicranial pain

JA Pareja

Corresponding Author

JA Pareja

Department of Neurology, Fundación Hospital Alcorcón and Rey Juan Carlos University,

Dr Juan A Pareja, Department of Neurology, Fundación Hospital Alcorcón, Budapest 1, 28922 Alcorcón, Madrid, Spain. Fax + 34 9 1621 9975, e-mail [email protected] or [email protected]Search for more papers by this author
ML Cuadrado

ML Cuadrado

Department of Neurology, Fundación Hospital Alcorcón and Rey Juan Carlos University,

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C Fernández-de-las-Peñas

C Fernández-de-las-Peñas

Department of Physical Therapy, Rey Juan Carlos University, Alcorcón, Madrid,

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AB Caminero

AB Caminero

Department of Neurology, Hospital N a S a de Sonsoles, Ávila,

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C Nieto

C Nieto

Department of Anaesthesiology, Fundación Hospital Alcorcón and Rey Juan Carlos University,

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C Sánchez

C Sánchez

Department of Neurology, Fundación Hospital Alcorcón and Rey Juan Carlos University,

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M Sols

M Sols

Department of Dermatology, Fundación Hospital Alcorcón, Alcorcón, and

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J Porta-Etessam

J Porta-Etessam

Department of Neurology, Hospital Clínico San Carlos, Madrid, Spain

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First published: 31 January 2008
Citations: 12

Abstract

Ten patients (one man and nine women, mean age 48.8 ± 20.1) presented with a stereotypical and undescribed type of head pain. They complained of strictly unilateral, shooting pain paroxysms starting in a focal area of the posterior parietal or temporal region and rapidly spreading forward to the ipsilateral eye (n = 7) or nose (n = 3) along a lineal or zigzag trajectory, the complete sequence lasting 1–10 s. Two patients had ipsilateral lacrimation, and one had rhinorrhoea at the end of the attacks. The attacks could be either spontaneous or triggered by touch on the stemming area (n = 2), which could otherwise remain tender or slightly painful between the paroxysms (n = 5). The frequency ranged from two attacks per month to countless attacks per day, and the temporal pattern was either remitting (n = 5) or chronic (n = 5). This clinical picture might be a variant of an established headache or represent a novel syndrome.

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