Extremely hot chilli sparked thunderhead headache

Extreme headache: man after eating chiles in emergency room

Participation in a chili contest has been doomed to a US man. The 34-year-old had eaten the "Carolina Reaper", the world's hottest chili pepper, and ended up with so-called "thunderbolt headaches" in the emergency room.

Health advantages and disadvantages of spicy food

Experts disagree on whether spicy food is more or less harmful to health. Although scientific research has come to the conclusion that hot chillies can lower high blood pressure and increase the relative life expectancy due to certain ingredients such as capsaicin. However, after eating spicy foods many people also experience health problems such as stomach problems, heartburn, abdominal pain or diarrhea. And in extreme cases, the consumption of chili peppers can also bring people to the hospital, as a case from the USA shows.

"Carolina Reaper" is the hottest chili pepper in the world. The consumption of such a pod brought a man from the US now in the clinic. He suffered from so-called "Thunder-beat headache". (Image: Lui / fotolia.com)

Sharpest chili pepper in the world

Although it can be expected that after eating hot chillies, symptoms such as a burning sensation in the mouth or even tears in the eyes, but that the pods can be responsible for the fact that you end up in the emergency room, then it is very unusual.

However, that's exactly what happened to a 34-year-old man in the US. He took part in a chili contest and had to go to hospital after eating a whole "Carolina Reaper" - according to experts the hottest chili pepper in the world - with extreme headaches.

The doctors at the Bassett Medical Center in Cooperstown, New York, found that the man was suffering from so-called thunderclap headache, sometimes referred to as the "annihilation headache.".

Arterial narrowing in the brain

According to a report in the New York Times, the pain in the head and neck already began immediately after eating the pod, but then passed again.

However, the symptoms reappeared in the following days with great violence, which is why the man sought medical help.

The physicians around Satish Kumar Boddhula report in the journal "BMJ Case Reports" that they diagnosed the computerized tomography of the extreme headache as a result of the so-called reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome (RCVS).

As it says on the portal "Medical Xpress", RCVS is characterized by a temporary narrowing of certain areas of the brain, often accompanied by thunderclap headache.

According to the study authors, an obvious cause can not always be established. Often, it can be in response to certain prescription drugs or taking illegal drugs.

First case associated with the consumption of chilli

According to Dr. Kulothungan Gunasekaran, one of the authors of the report, for some reason, the man must have been particularly sensitive to capsaicin. The patient recovered well.

He had no more pain attacks. Five weeks after the incident, another recording of the brain blood vessels revealed that the strictures had disappeared.

This is the first case associated with eating chili peppers, the authors explain.

However, they point out that the consumption of cayenne pepper has already been linked to a sudden narrowing of the coronary arteries and heart attacks.

With sudden onset of intense headaches quickly to the doctor

In the past, the German Migraine and Headache Society (DMKG) pointed out that sudden onset of intense headaches should be clarified as soon as possible in a differential diagnosis.

"As a rule of thumb, for severe headache exacerbations -" headache like never before "-, unknown, severe or unusually long-lasting headache, or when additional neurological symptoms occur, e.g. Neck stiffness, loss of consciousness, hemiplegia or numbness, a doctor should be consulted immediately, "the experts write in an earlier release.

The physician could potentially recognize or exclude potentially life-threatening causes. (Ad)