UNIQUE ASSOCIATION OF PHEOCHROMOCYTOMA WITH CONTRALATERAL NONFUNCTIONING ADRENAL-CORTICAL ADENOMA

A 57-year-old woman complaining of hypertensive attacks associated wit h headache and palpitation was admitted to our hospital for examinatio n of bilateral adrenal tumors in 1985. After right pheochromocytoma wa s diagnosed, right adrenalectomy was performed. The left adrenal tumor was small; thus, the left adrenal tumor was preserved to avoid adrena l insufficiency, although left adrenal pheochromocytoma could not be d enied. In 1995, she was referred to our clinic again because of recurr ent headache and palpitation, and enlargement of the left adrenal tumo r. Although pheochromocytoma was suspected again, the enlarged left ad renal turned out to be a nonfunctioning cortical adenoma. This case wa s interesting, not only because of difficulty in identifying the left adrenal tumor, but also because of the rare coexistence of a pheochrom ocytoma and a nonfunctioning adrenal cortical tumor. (C) 1998 American Journal of Hypertension, Ltd.