Pheochromocytoma causing cardiomyopathy, ischemic stroke and acute arterial thrombosis: a case report and review of the literature

Abstract

Pheochromocytoma is a rare catecholamine secreting neuroendocrine tumor with an estimated annual incidence of one to four per million and prevalence among hypertensive patients of 0.1 to 0.6%. The symptoms and signs of pheochromocytoma include the classic triad of episodic headache, increased sweating, and palpitations. These are as a result of an uncontrolled release of catecholamines. There exist only a small number of reports of pheochromocytoma simulating hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy, few reports of pheochromocytoma-induced ischemic stroke and only two reported cases with pheochromocytoma-induced arterial thrombosis. We present a case of multiple, rare clinical complications of pheochromocytoma occurring in the same patient and the review of literature of these complications.