Pituitary necrosis syndrome (postpartum hypopituitarism syndrome; sheehan syndrome; simmonds-sheehan syndrome) 9

General: Etiology unknown; vascular occlusion of one of the vessels supplying the anterior lobe of the pituitary during childbirth; characterized by various degrees of anterior and/or posterior pituitary dysfunction due to pituitary necrosis after obstetric shock or hemorrhage.

Ocular: Hypotrichosis of eyebrows; loss of eyelashes; dry and scaly skin of the lids; visual loss due to vascular insufficiency; uveal depigmentation.

Clinical: Reduced sweating with dry skin; listlessness and lethargy; stupor; myxedema; premature aging; cutaneous hypopigmentation; reduced and sparse axillary and pubic hair; genital atrophy; menstrual irregularity; amenorrhea; thyroiditis.

Hoyt WF. Transient bilateral blurring of vision: considerations of episodic ischemic symptom of vertebral-basilar insufficiency. Arch Ophthalmol 1963; 70:746.

Sasaki H, et al. Simultaneous occurrence of postpartum hypopituitarism (Sheehan syndrome) and transient resolving thyrotoxicosis due to postpartum painless thyroiditis. South Med J 1992; 85:660-662.

Sheehan HL. Atypical hypopituitarism. Proc R Soc Med 1961; 54:43.

Simmonds M. Uber Hypophysisschwund mit Todlichem Ausgang. Dtsch Med Wochenschr 1914; 40:322.