Postpartum intracranial hemorrhage disguised as preeclampsia.
A 35-year-old woman, gravida 5 para 3, presented to the emergency department 9 days after a cesarean delivery with a new-onset headache, hypertension, and hyperreflexia. Formal urinalysis did not demonstrate proteinuria. Computed tomography of the brain demonstrated bilateral parietal subarachnoid hemorrhages. The patient was subsequently transferred to a tertiary care hospital where she underwent magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomographic angiography that were not suggestive of intracerebral aneurysm, arteriovenous malformation, sinus thrombosis, or angiopathy. The patient was treated with nimodipine and was successfully discharged without any neurologic sequelae or continued hypertension. This case illustrates the potential for presumed postpartum preeclampsia to mask other serious entities, such as intracranial hemorrhage.
Tanguay
Jason J
JJ
Department of Emergency Medicine, Midwestern University/Chicago, College of Osteopathic Medicine, Downers Grove, Chicago, IL 60610, USA. jtanguay@gmail.com
Allegretti
Paul J
PJ
D000328:Adult; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D020300:Intracranial Hemorrhages / Q000175:diagnosis*; D049590:Postpartum Period; D011225:Pre-Eclampsia / Q000175:diagnosis*; D011247:Pregnancy