Gynecological endocrinology : the official journal of the International Society of Gynecological Endocrinology
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Gynecol. Endocrinol. · Oct 2002
Case ReportsHyponatremia and hypoglycemia in acute Sheehan's syndrome.
We report the case of a 23-year-old Saudi Arabian woman who presented to the medical intensive care unit with severe hyponatremia and hypoglycemia following a Cesarean section delivery complicated by hemorrhage due to disseminated intravascular coagulopathy. She was treated successfully for adrenal insufficiency acutely, and was later discharged on hormone replacement therapy. To our knowledge, this is the first case report of acute Sheehan's syndrome presenting with both hyponatremia and suggestive hypoglycemia. ⋯ There are many studies describing complications of late Sheehan's syndrome; however, relatively few contain descriptions of the acute phase. In addition, the diagnosis of this syndrome is often determined after resolution of the acute process with resultant lack of data regarding immediate endocrine and imaging abnormalities. In this report, we describe the complete endocrine and imaging assessment of a patient presenting in critical condition due to necrosis of the pituitary gland in the immediate postpartum period.