1984 Volume 4 Issue 3 Pages 245-251
A 77 year old man was scheduled for reparing an abdominal aneurysm. He complained of sudden abdominal pain and a tumor mass in his abdomen. He had no prior episode of hypertension nor palpitation. An aortic aneurysm was suspected by the aortographic and CT examinations. On laparotomy, however, the tumor was noted not to communicate with the aorta. The surgical manipulation induced abrupt elevation in the arterial blood pressure and pulse rate, indicating pheochromocytoma. Phentolamine and propranolol iv were required intra-operatively to control the circulatory status, but not after removal of the tumor, and his postoperative course was uneventful. The histological examination indicated a para-aortic paraganglioma with pheochromocytoma: The incidence and basis of pathophysiology of unsuspected pheochromocytoma and its anesthetic problems were discussed.
