Postoperative conversion disorder

Kola Afolabi; Sameer Ali; Vivian Gahtan; Reza Gorji; Fenghua Li; Nancy A Nussmeier

doi:10.1016/j.jclinane.2015.12.002

Postoperative conversion disorder

J Clin Anesth. 2016 May:30:21-3. doi: 10.1016/j.jclinane.2015.12.002. Epub 2016 Feb 20.

Authors

Kola Afolabi¹, Sameer Ali², Vivian Gahtan³, Reza Gorji¹, Fenghua Li¹, Nancy A Nussmeier⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Anesthesiology, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY 13210, USA.
² Department of Neurology, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY 13210, USA.
³ Division of Vascular Surgery and Endovascular Services, Department of Surgery, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY 13210, USA.
⁴ Department of Anesthesiology, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY 13210, USA. Electronic address: nnussmeier@partners.org.

PMID: 27041258
DOI: 10.1016/j.jclinane.2015.12.002

Abstract

Conversion disorder is a psychiatric disorder in which psychological stress causes neurologic deficits. A 28-year-old female surgical patient had uneventful general anesthesia and emergence but developed conversion disorder 1 hour postoperatively. She reported difficulty speaking, right-hand numbness and weakness, and right-leg paralysis. Neurologic examination and imaging revealed no neuronal damage, herniation, hemorrhage, or stroke. The patient mentioned failing examinations the day before surgery and discontinuing her prescribed antidepressant medication, leading us to diagnose conversion disorder, with eventual confirmation by neuroimaging and follow-up examinations.

Keywords: Anesthesia; Conversion disorder; General; Postoperative complications.

Publication types

Case Reports
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adult
Anesthesia, General / methods
Conversion Disorder / diagnosis*
Conversion Disorder / etiology
Female
Hemiplegia / etiology
Humans
Hypesthesia / etiology
Muscle Weakness / etiology
Postoperative Complications / diagnosis*
Stress, Psychological / complications*