The
carbonic anhydrase inhibitor acetazolamide causes extracellular
acidosis and dilatation of cerebral arterioles. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that
acetazolamide also may induce
headache and dilatation of cranial arteries. In a randomized double-blind crossover study design, 12 young healthy women were allocated to injection of 1 g
acetazolamide or placebo on 2 separate days. We recorded
headache on a verbal rating scale from 0 to 10 during an immediate phase (0-90 minutes) and a delayed phase (2-12 hours). The circumference of cranial arteries was measured using 3T high-resolution magnetic resonance angiography 30 and 60 minutes after injection.
Acetazolamide provoked immediate
headache in 9 participants compared to 3 participants after placebo (P=.031). Eleven participants reported
headache in the delayed phase after
acetazolamide, compared with 4 after placebo (P=.016). The area under the curve for
headache was increased after
acetazolamide compared to placebo in the delayed phase (2-12 h) (P=.005). Compared to placebo, arterial circumference increased after
acetazolamide in the basilar artery (P=.002) as well as the cerebral (P=.003), cavernous (P=.002), and cervical (P=.005) parts of the internal carotid artery, but no other extracranial arteries changed after
acetazolamide. In conclusion,
acetazolamide caused immediate and delayed
headache as well as dilatation of intracranial arteries in healthy volunteers. It is possible that extracellular
acidosis induced by
acetazolamide causes sensitization of cephalic perivascular nociceptors, which, in combination with vasodilatation, leads to delayed
headache.