A man suffered with hiccups for four months before seeking out medical advice after developing an intense headache for two weeks.
After seeking out medical help, the man in his 30s was diagnosed with a form of brain tumour which was believed to be causing the hiccups after receiving a brain scan to understand the root cause.
He also reported that he had been vomiting up to three times a day according to a case report.
His health had begun to deteriorate some four months earlier when he began to have near constant hiccups which prevented him from being able to sleep properly.
The symptoms began to recede after the patient started to receive treatment for his cancer.
Experts in the British Medical Journal theorised that the tumour had affected the part of his brain stem that controlled nerves and muscle that provoke a hiccup.
Dr Nagasubramanyam Vempalli, of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences wrote the BMJ report about the case which had taken place in the Indian city Rishikesh in the Himalayan foothills.
The report said that the patient had gone to A&E and told staff that he had previously asked for help with his hiccups.
After a physical exam and blood tests did not return anything conclusive, he was sent off for a CT scan to get a more accurate picture.
To stay up to date with all the latest news, make sure you sign up for one of our newsletters here.
The scan revealed a lesion in the patient's brain, and he was then put in for an MRI scan to get a more detailed image.
The MRI showed that he had a kind of tumour which grows on the brainstem, the part of the brain which connects it to the spine.
After an operation, the man was put in for a course of radio therapy after which his hiccups improved.
"The patient’s hiccups began to resolve after the initiation of radiotherapy and after 1 month of radiotherapy, the patient’s hiccups had subsided considerably," Dr Vempalli said.
Sadly the man did ultimately pass away, but it is not made clear in the report if this was as a result of the cancer.
Source: Read Full Article
