A 29-year-old Woman with Recurrent Pregnancy-induced Hypertension Based on Vascular Compression of the Medulla Oblongata

Intern Med. 2019 Aug 1;58(15):2257-2261. doi: 10.2169/internalmedicine.2382-18. Epub 2019 Apr 17.

Abstract

We present a report of a 29-year-old woman with non-dipper type refractory hypertension due to the vascular compression of the medulla oblongata. The patient was diagnosed with hypertension at 17 years of age and underwent emergency Caesarean section at 26 weeks of gestation during 2 pregnancies due to severe high blood pressure. We suspected medullary compression by the curved posterior inferior cerebellar artery as the cause of her intractable hypertension, and she underwent Jannetta's decompression surgery. After the surgery, her blood pressure swiftly decreased to almost within the normal range, and her blood pressure pattern normalized to dipper type.

Keywords: Jannetta's decompression surgery; intractable hypertension; medullary compression; non-dipper type; pregnancy-induced hypertension.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Blood Pressure
  • Cesarean Section
  • Decompression, Surgical / methods*
  • Female
  • Gestational Age
  • Humans
  • Hypertension, Pregnancy-Induced / physiopathology
  • Hypertension, Pregnancy-Induced / surgery*
  • Medulla Oblongata / blood supply*
  • Pregnancy
  • Vertebral Artery / surgery*