Epidural anaesthesia for Caesarean section in a patient with von Hippel-Lindau disease.

Von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) disease is an autosomal dominant disorder with vari able penetrance. It is mainly characterized by haemangioblastomas of the re tina and central nervous system. Because of physiological effects of uterin e contractions, labour and spontaneous vaginal delivery increase the risk o f disrupting central nervous system haemangiblastomas. We report the case o f a 28-year-old woman with an history of VHL disease who had an epidural an aesthesia for labour and for Caesarean section performed because of failure to progress and of fetal distress. The overall maternal and neonatal outco mes were excellent. (C) 2001 Editions scientifiques et medicales Elsevier S AS.