If you like sex and coffee, you may be at greater risk for a brain hemorrhage, according to a study published earlier this month by the journal Stroke.
http://stroke.ahajournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/STROKEAHA.110.606558v1
The Netherlands study sought to find out what triggers the rupture of brain aneurysms, which result in hemorrhagic strokes. An aneurysm, as The Los Angeles Times explained, is a weak point in one of the brain’s blood vessels. Those can burst due to stress, causing internal bleeding. But researchers wanted to find out what kind of stresses prompt such hemorrhaging.
http://articles.latimes.com/2011/may/05/news/la-heb-brain-aneurysm-20110505
To try to identify specifically what causes these ruptures, during a three-year period the study had 250 people who had suffered subarachnoid hemorrhages complete a questionnaire on 30 “potential trigger factors” during the period before the person had his or her hemorrhage.
The study ultimately identified eight triggers: coffee consumption; cola consumption; anger; being startled; “straining for defecation”; sexual intercourse; nose blowing; and vigorous physical exercise.
The highest population-attributable risks were found for coffee consumption (10.6 percent) and vigorous physical exercise (7.9 percent).
The study’s conclusion?
“We identified and quantified eight trigger factors for aneurysmal rupture,” it said. “All triggers induce a sudden and short increase in blood pressure, which seems a possible common cause for aneurysmal rupture. Some triggers are modifiable, and further studies should assess whether reduction of exposure to these factors or measures preventing sudden increase in blood pressure decrease the risk of rupture in patients known to have an intracranial aneurysm.”
