Unsuspected pheochromocytoma: von Hippel-Lindau disease.

The authors report a case of cerebellar hemangioma excision in a 13-year-old girl with unsuspected pheochromocytoma. This patient had an uneventful attempt at embolization of her tumor under general anesthesia but manifested hypertensive crisis during the intracranial surgery. The intra- and postoperative course of events and management are described. The possible causes leading to hypertension in an unsuspected pheochromocytoma are discussed. The anesthetic management of this patient for excision of pheochromocytoma is also presented.