Transient burning pain in the ipsilateral orbit as an initial manifestation of dorsal pontine hemorrhage: case report.

ABSTRACT

A 45-year-old man with a past history of hypertension and hyperlipidemia presented with right dorsal pontine hemorrhage manifesting as transient burning pain in the right orbital region, followed by numbness and mild weakness of the left side of the body. Magnetic resonance imaging showed a hyperintense lesion in the right dorsal pons on T(1)-weighted and T(2)-weighted images, but no other abnormalities suggesting vascular lesions in the midbrain, medulla, cerebellum, or cerebrum. These findings were consistent with the subacute stage of small pontine hemorrhage. He was treated to decrease his blood pressure. The symptoms gradually improved and he has suffered neither recurrence of the orbital pain nor migraine for several months after the first episode of headache. The trigeminal nociceptive system in the dorsal lateral pons may be linked to this characteristic pain, as suggested by reports of secondary migraine caused by cavernous hemangioma and arteriovenous malformation, and activation of the dorsal lateral pons during migraine attacks on positron emission tomography.