Headache can be the only symptom of COVID-19: a case series

Abstract

Headache is the fourth most common cause among the total applications to emergency services; it constitutes 5% of the applications to hospitals every year. Five-fold increase was detected in the incidence of headache in the regions affected by coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. While the symptoms of respiratory systems have been frequently observed, the occurrence of symptoms and complications in peripheral and central nervous system has become increasingly prevalent in the cases of COVID-19 disease. In this case series, we highlight that the patients with isolated headache may be diagnosed with COVID-19 infection. Three female patients (forty, sixty and sixty-two years of old) were admitted to the emergency service with complaints of severe headache. Their headache did not respond to the paracetamol and the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) they used prior to their application to the hospital. No pathologic finding was detected in cerebral imaging. All patients were diagnosed with COVID-19 by their clinical status and history. The headache was the isolated symptom of the COVID-19 in all the three cases. The possibility of COVID-19 infection must be considered in the evaluation of the patients admitted to hospital with complaints of headache, one of the most frequent reasons for hospital assistance requests.

Keywords

• headache
• COVID-19
• SARS-CoV-2
• Neurologic Manifestations

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