An unusual complication following the removal of a neuroblastoma

A 17-month-old girl had a neuroblastoma with high preoperative urinary excretion of norepinephrine and a manifest hypertension. She developed during and after surgery circulatory complications similar to those seen when a pheochromocytoma is removed without prior sympathetic blockade. This complication in connection with a neuroblastoma has not been described previously. This case points to the necessity of careful preoperative evaluation of the circulatory function in cases of neuroblastomas in children. The paediatric surgeon and the anaesthetist should take a preoperative sympathetic blockade into consideration.