Acute adrenal insufficiency after coronary artery bypass grafting.

We report a case of acute adrenal insufficiency after elective coronary artery bypass grafting. This potentially fatal complication has been reported only once before in the cardiac surgical literature, more than 15 years ago. Unfortunately, adrenal insufficiency in this setting is easily confused with the clinical picture of septic shock or an acute abdominal pathology, and it is our belief that this condition could easily escape recognition and thus contribute to needless mortality.