[Pheochromocytoma in pregnancy--pathophysiology and therapy (author's transl)].

In this paper pathophysiology of pheochromocytoma and its modern diagnostic and therapeutic management are discussed with special regard to the combination of pheochromocytoma and pregnancy. The preoperative treatment with phenoxybenzamine is evaluated. As for the anesthetic management barbiturates and neurolept anesthesia are recommended. In the acute treatment of extreme blood pressure values sodium nitroprusside is preferred to phentolamine. Whereas vaginal delivery is contraindicated in a patient with pheochromocytoma there is no definite superiority of tumorresection along with caesarean section against a separate abdominal procedure.