Inherited neuropathy can cause postpartum foot drop.
Postpartum neurological complications occur in up to 1% of deliveries. Often prior anesthetic procedures are blamed, with medicolegal implications. We describe a young woman who presented with postpartum foot drop diagnosed as an iatrogenic L5 root lesion after uncomplicated epidural anesthesia. After neurological assessment some 5 mo later she tested positive for the common hereditary neuropathy with liability to pressure palsies mutation that was a likely contributing factor in the development of her postpartum neuropathy. Anesthesiologists should consider hereditary neuropathies in the differential diagnosis of postpartum or postsurgical neurological deficits if there is a suggestive clinical history.
Peters
Gary
G
Department of Neurology, Walton Centre for Neurology and Neurosurgery, Fazakerley, Liverpool, UK.
Hinds
Nigel P
NP
D000328:Adult; D002585:Cesarean Section; D004576:Electromyography; D005260:Female; D005528:Foot; D015417:Hereditary Sensory and Motor Neuropathy / Q000150:complications* / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D009185:Myelin Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D009431:Neural Conduction / Q000502:physiology; D009460:Neurologic Examination; D009468:Neuromuscular Diseases / Q000209:etiology* / Q000235:genetics / Q000503:physiopathology*; D049590:Postpartum Period; D011247:Pregnancy
D009185:Myelin Proteins; C073687:PMP22 protein, human