II. Symptoms
- Bilateral throbbing, pulsating or pressure Headache
- Headache duration: minutes to 2 days
- Provocative factors
- Exercise
- Coughing, sneezing, blowing
- Lifting weight
- Straining at stool
- Crying
- Singing
- Sexual activity (intercourse, masturbation)
- May peak with orgasm
- May also be trigger in Migraine Headache
III. Differential Diagnosis
- Benign Cough Headache
- Cerebral Aneurysm
- Posterior fossa lesion
- Meningioma
- Acoustic Neuroma
- Chiari Malformation
- Midbrain lesion
IV. Evaluation
- Exertional Headache is a Headache Red Flag
- Rule-out Organic Headache in all cases
VI. Management
- Evaluate all cases for Organic Headache first
- Consider prophylaxis prior to exertion or intercourse
VII. References
- Cutrer in Goldman (2000) Cecil Medicine, p. 2066
- Goetz (1999) Clinical Neurology, p. 1101
- (2004) Cephalgia 24(suppl 1): 9-160 [PubMed]
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Related Studies
| Concepts | Pathologic Function (T046) |
| ICD10 | G44.82 |
| English | Orgasmic headache |
Ontology: Exertional headache (C2363911)
| Concepts | Sign or Symptom (T184) |
| English | Exertional headache |
| Spanish | Cefalea de esfuerzo |
| Dutch | hoofdpijn bij inspanning |
| Italian | Mal di testa da sforzo |
| German | Kopfschmerz unter koerperlicher Belastung |
| French | Mal de tête à l'effort |
| Portuguese | Cefaleia de esforço |
| Czech | Námahová bolest hlavy |
| Japanese | 労作性頭痛, ﾛｳｻｾｲｽﾞﾂｳ |
| Hungarian | Terheléskori fejfájás |
