Palinopsia Accompanied with Migraine Attack After Having Occipital Brain Abscess

Neuroophthalmology. 2018 Sep 19;43(5):327-329. doi: 10.1080/01658107.2018.1519581. eCollection 2019 Nov.

Abstract

Palinopsia is defined as persistence of recurrent visual images after the stimulus has been removed. A 55-year-old male patient with long-standing migraine history developed brain abscess in the right occipital lobe. The patient developed episodes of palinopsia accompanied with migraine attack after healing of occipital lesion. The phenomenon cannot be sufficiently explained with single risk factor, although occipital lesion and migraine are both known to cause palinopsia. We speculated that migrainous brain is not always symptomatic but may drive cortex sensitive for second insult, such as occipital brain lesion. The predisposition may contribute to appearance of palinopsia.

Keywords: Cortical irritability; migrainous brain; occipital lesion; recurrent visual images.

Publication types

  • Case Reports