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Pseudotumor Cerebri Symptoms
The common symptoms are headache, dizziness and impaired vision.
Headache is often worse on awakening, and can be intensified by coughing, laughing, bending over, crying, and increased physical activity.
Impaired vision shows up in several ways. It can be visual blurring, brief moments of dimming or loss of vision called transient visual obscurations (TVO's), small specks appearing or vision distortions (items moving up or down).
Blindness can occur.
Other symptoms affecting PTC patients include: shoulder/arm pain, neck pain, memory problems, awkward coordination, muscle weakness, fatigue, back pain, and depression.
Possible symptoms include dizziness, hearing loss, ringing in the ears or noises within the head called tinnitus.
Regarding headaches: a study showed 92% of patients interviewed had headaches; 93% of those with headaches said it was the most severe headache they had ever experienced. The head pain was described as a pulsing headache that kept increasing in intensity. Another description was a "pressure" headache, resembling a percolator. Seventy four percent of those with headaches had it on a daily basis. Can also experience neck stiffness or nausea.
Pseudotumor Cerebri Characteristics
By appearance, a person looks well.
PTC can last for months or for years. It can go into remission. For those in remission, PTC can re-occur 5% to 10% of the time.
80% of PTC patients have some positive response to treatment. (This means that the PTC symptoms improve, not that the PTC necessarily goes away.)
Pseudotumor Cerebri most commonly appears in women of child-bearing age. However, this disease also occurs in children and teenagers (both male and female) and adult males.
For women of child-bearing age, there is often a history of menstrual problems. Frequently these women are overweight and/or have had a recent weight gain.
Although physicians recommend weight loss, there are patients whose weight loss has not affected their PTC.
A number of PTC patients have had a previous history of sinus problems.
Many patients are light-sensitive; bright lights bother them and fluorescent light will fatigue and bring on confusion.
Endocrine studies can appear normal.
Often PTC is complicated with high blood pressure.
PTC does appear to have a relationship to adrenal hormones.
Things Linked to PTC
Secondary PTC has appeared with the use of oral contraceptives, prolonged use of corticosteroids, large doses of vitamin A, use of tetracycline , nalidixic acid, nitrofurantoin, sulfa drugs, lithium, indomethacin, and phenytoin. Rapid recovery often occurs when drug use is stopped. Chlordane toxicity (an insecticide) can also cause PTC.
Other things linked to PTC include:
Tetracyclines (including doxycycline and minocycline, antibiotics for chlamydia and acne)
Lithium carbonate (a mineral salt to treat bipolar or manic-depressive disorder)
Systemic lupus erythematosus
Lyme disease
Addison's disease (a condition in which the adrenal glands hypofunction)
Cushing's disease (a condition in which the adrenal glands hyperfunction)
Prednisone (and other steroids, possibly by any route including topically, nasally, orally, etc.)
Hypo-thyroidism
Hyper-thyroidism
Pregnancy
Obesity
Head Trauma
Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Empty Sella Syndrome (condition in which the pituitary hypofunctions)
Licorice (the inciting ingredient is glycericic acid)
Vitamin A or its derivatives (used in bone marrow transplantation patients and to treat acne)
Respiratory infections
Sleep apnea (a condition in which the patient snores and has headaches upon awakening)
Norplant (a contraceptive that is implanted under the skin)
Growth hormone therapy
Climacteric (the start of menopause)
Kidney disorders and kidney transplants