Kendra Jackson, 52, of Omaha, Nebraska, felt she had a severe cold for the past two years.
“At first, I just assumed it was my allergies or a runny nose — like the beginning of a cold,” Jackson explained.
Coughing, sneezing, and a runny nose started 212 years after Jackson was in a terrible vehicle accident. She recalls slamming her head against the dashboard, and she’s had migraine headaches ever since.
Jackson’s “runny nose” continued to deteriorate in 2015.
“When it didn’t go away, I went back and forth to the doctors, and they prescribed every kind of medicine you could imagine, and my nose just kept running,” she explained.
Her physicians told her that she most likely had allergies. Jackson went to Nebraska Medicine this year and discovered the true cause of her nasal discharge: a cerebrospinal fluid (or CSF) leak caused by a small hole in her skull.
“She’d wake up in the morning with the entire front of her shirt soaked in the fluid after sleeping upright in a chair. There was a lot of movement “Dr. Christie Barnes, a rhinologist at Nebraska Medicine and one of the case’s main surgeons, remarked
Jackson estimated that she was losing half a liter of fluid every day.
A doctor’s assistant “Immediately realized that this was more than a runny nose and that it was consistent with a CSF leak. As a result, we had her collect her bodily fluids and send them out for testing “Barnes stated his opinion.
The clear, colorless fluid that surrounds and protects the brain and spinal cord are known as cerebrospinal fluid. According to the Cleveland Clinic, the fluid also aids in the removal of waste products from the brain and the distribution of nutrients and other substances throughout the central nervous system.
“The fluid that bathes the brain is known as CSF. Because the brain is a soft organ and the skull is a fixed box, it must be safeguarded from moving around inside it “Barnes stated his opinion. “As a result, it acts as a cushion for the brain and spinal cord.”
Cerebrospinal fluid is constantly created in the brain and is generally absorbed into the bloodstream via protrusions in the dura mater, the brain’s outer membrane.
A tiny hole in Jackson’s cribriform plate, a thin bone that separates her cranial and nasal chambers, caused the fluid to leak into her nose and mouth, causing her symptoms.
This section of the skull, according to Barnes, is “Very thin, about the thickness of a potato chip. It’s also one of the most prevalent sites for this kind of CSF leak “Barnes stated his opinion.
Cerebrospinal fluid leaks are quite uncommon, occurring in about five out of every 100,000 people worldwide each year. According to the CSF Leak Association, they are most usually caused by trauma or surgery.
In Jackson’s instance, doctors suspect her vehicle accident may have created a small hole that became larger over time.
Barnes added, “She was rear-ended and suffered head injuries, so it’s probably plausible.” “It may have resulted in a thin spot there. Her symptoms began a few days after the accident, so I believe it’s a mix of both the trauma and the increased pressure in her case.”
Cerebrospinal fluid leaks can be life-threatening depending on the amount of fluid lost. According to Barnes, they also raise the patient’s risk of illnesses like meningitis.
Physicians at Nebraska Medicine treated Jackson’s illness by plugging the hole in her skull with tissue from her nose and abdomen, according to Barnes.
“I plugged the leak with tissue from the inside of her nose,” Barnes explained. “I also borrowed some abdominal fat; it works well as a plugging agent in this region, therefore I was able to plug the leak with just a small amount of fat.”
Jackson has returned home over a month after the procedure and reports that the mystery leak has vanished.
“I don’t have the nasal drip anymore,” she explained, “but I still have headaches.” “I’m actually feeling very decent, and I’m getting some sleep.”
Despite the rarity of her condition, Jackson wants people to be aware that cerebrospinal fluid leaks can happen, especially after a head injury: “If you’re tasting a very salty taste and something is draining in the back of your throat after hearing my story, it’s probably something other than allergies. So get to the doctor as soon as possible.”