Post-Partum necrosis of the pituitary

Summary

• 1. Three patients suffering from post-partum pituitary necrosis are described. The first patient died soon after parturition and post-mortem revealed necrosis of nine-tenths of the anterior lobe of the pituitary. The second patient was still alive eight months after parturition, but in a condition of chronic invalidism. The third patient was in good health eighteen months later.

• 2. The obstetrical details of the three patients are described in detail, and contributing factors are discussed.

• 3. In the second patient an acute hypoglycæmic coma with convulsions occurred sixteen days after parturition.

• 4. The diagnosis and treatment of the condition at various stages is discussed.

• 5. It is considered that post-partum necrosis is a relatively rare complication of parturition, but the diagnosis of the more frequent milder types of the syndrome is difficult, notwithstanding the use of recent biochemical methods.