Migraines are recurrent debilitating headaches that predominately afflict young women. The pathophysiology of migraines is still not well understood but is related to neurovascular dysfunction. Meningeal blood vessel dilation, extravasation of pro-inflammatory cytokines and activation of trigeminal afferent neurons promote migraine generation.
Serotonin (5-HT) is an endogenous vasoactive peptide with diverse physiology. In meningeal blood vessels, serotonin causes vasoconstriction, however in coronary arteries, serotonin causes both vasodilation and vasoconstriction. In diseased coronary arteries, with impaired endothelial function, vasoconstriction predominates.
Selective meningeal blood vessel serotonin agonists, termed ‘triptans’, have become the therapy of choice for migraine headaches. However, due to their constrictive effects on the coronary vasculature, triptans are not recommend in patients with known coronary artery disease, patients with greater than one coronary artery risk factor or patients with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease risk (ASCVD) greater than ten percent.
Triptan associated chest pain is a well-known phenomenon. Age, hypertension, dyspepsia, and Raynauds phenomenon are associated with triptan associated chest pain. Hypertension is the strongest risk factor for triptan associated chest pain in males. Although triptan associated chest pain is assumed to be cardiovascular due to its constrictive effect on the coronary vasculature, only a few cases of myocardial infarction, with documented ST elevation and/or troponin elevation, have been reported.
Herein we report the case of a male patient with inferolateral ST elevation myocardial infarction, within minutes of receiving subcutaneous sumatriptan for migraine headache. The patient had a normal echocardiogram and electrocardiogram prior to sumatriptan use, and a normal cardiac catheterization afterwards.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ETSU/oai:dc.etsu.edu:asrf-1098 |
| Date | 05 April 2018 |
| Creators | Finniss, Mathew Christopher, MD, Bains, Nimrat, MD, Shamas, Shelby, DO |
| Publisher | Digital Commons @ East Tennessee State University |
| Source Sets | East Tennessee State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | Appalachian Student Research Forum |
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