neurologic disorders
Post–Lumbar Puncture and Other Low–Pressure Headaches
Treatment of Post LP and Other Low Pressure Headaches
Hydration andcaffeine Usually an epidural blood patch The first line of treatment for post-LP headache is Recumbency Hydration An elastic abdominal binder Caffeine Analgesics as needed However, if post-LP headache persists after a day of such treatment, an epidural blood patch (injection of a few mL of the patient’s clotted venous blood into the lumbar epidural space) is usually effective. A blood patch may also be effective for spontaneous or traumatic CSF leaks, which rarely require surgical closure. The blood patch is thought to increase the pressure in the epidural space, decreasing the rate of the CSF leakage, regardless of where the CSF leak is. If normal CSF production exceeds the rate of leakage, the symptoms resolve. 