{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,11,2]],"date-time":"2026-11-02T23:15:54Z","timestamp":1793661354449,"version":"4.5.1"},"reference-count":24,"publisher":"Oxford University Press (OUP)","issue":"6","content-domain":{"domain":["eje.bioscientifica.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":[],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2015,12]]},"abstract":"<jats:sec><jats:title>Objective<\/jats:title><jats:p>Pheochromocytomas are rare chromaffin cell-derived tumors causing paroxysmal episodes of headache, palpitation, sweating and hypertension. Life-threatening complications have been described in case reports and small series. Systematic analyses are not available. We took an opportunity of a large series to make a survey.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Design and methods<\/jats:title><jats:p>We analyzed records of patients diagnosed with pheochromocytomas in three geographically spread German referral centers between 2003 and 2012 (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>=135).<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Results<\/jats:title><jats:p>Eleven percent of the patients (ten women, five men) required in-hospital treatment on intensive care units (ICUs) due to complications caused by unsuspected pheochromocytomas. The main reasons for ICU admission were acute catecholamine induced Tako-Tsubo cardiomyopathy (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>=4), myocardial infarction (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>=2), acute pulmonary edema (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>=2), cerebrovascular stroke (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>=2), ischemic ileus (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>=1), acute renal failure (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>=2), and multi organ failure (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>=1). One patient required extracorporeal membrane oxygenation due to a hypertensive crisis with lung edema occurring during delivery (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>=1). Two patients died of refractory shock and pheochromocytomas were found postmortem. Two patients were treated by emergency surgery. Compared to pheochromocytoma patients without life-threatening events (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic>=120), patients with complications had a significant larger maximal tumor diameter (7.0 vs 4.5\u200acm,<jats:italic>P<\/jats:italic>&lt;0.01), higher levels of catecholamines (20- vs ninefold upper limit of normal,<jats:italic>P<\/jats:italic>&lt;0.01), and tended to be younger (42 vs 51 years,<jats:italic>P<\/jats:italic>=0.05).<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title><jats:p>Although pheochromocytomas are rare, they are likely to be associated with a life-threatening situation. Clinicians have to be aware of these situations and perform a timely diagnosis.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1530\/eje-15-0483","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2015,10,24]],"date-time":"2015-10-24T12:13:08Z","timestamp":1445688788000},"page":"757-764","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1530\/crossmarkpolicy-1","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":100,"title":["Life-threatening events in patients with pheochromocytoma"],"prefix":"10.1093","volume":"173","author":[{"given":"Anna","family":"Riester","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Dirk","family":"Weismann","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Marcus","family":"Quinkler","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Urs D","family":"Lichtenauer","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Sandra","family":"Sommerey","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Roland","family":"Halbritter","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Randolph","family":"Penning","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Christine","family":"Spitzweg","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jochen","family":"Schopohl","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Felix","family":"Beuschlein","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Martin","family":"Reincke","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"286","reference":[{"key":"2015102318231809000_173.6.757.1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/S0140-6736(05)67139-5"},{"key":"2015102318231809000_173.6.757.2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1196\/annals.1353.001"},{"key":"2015102318231809000_173.6.757.3","unstructured":"Kopetschke R Slisko M Kilisli A Tuschy U Wallaschofski H Fassnacht M Ventz M Beuschlein F Reincke M Reisch N . 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