[Intracranial pressure in sleep apnea, hydrocephalus and congenital hemangioma. A case report].

A patient with obstructive sleep-apnea-syndrome and congenital temporal and cervical hemangiomas developed severe headache under nasal BiPAP ventilation. Internal hydrocephalus was diagnosed by CCT and MRI and rise of intracranial pressure (ICP) under artificial ventilation was supposed. Polysomnography, ICP-measurement with a ventricular catheter and resistance to outflow-measurement were used to clarify differential diagnosis. During periods of apnea ICP was raised severely with a maximum in REM-sleep. With nasal ventilation no apnea was observed and ICP was normalized. Resistance to outflow was normal. A disturbance of CSF-dynamics or CSF-absorption leading to the patient's headache could be excluded. Duplex-sonography and cerebral angiography did not provide further information. After exclusion of other causes artificial respiration dependent swelling of the subcutaneous temporal and cervical hemangiomas was the most likely cause triggering the headache. A sufficient therapy however was not yet available. Probably the patient suffers from an abortive form of a Sturge-Weber-Krabbe-Dimitri-Syndrome.