Sheehan?s syndrome

Injury	Disease	Nutrition	Poison

Symptoms	Surgery	Test	Special Topic

Endocrine glands

Sheehan?s syndrome

Definition:

Sheehan's syndrome is a condition that may occur in a woman who has a severe uterine hemorrhage during childbirth. The resulting severe blood loss causes tissue death in her pituitary gland and leads to hypopituitarism following the birth.

Alternative Names:
Postpartum hypopituitarism; Postpartum pituitary insufficiency; Hypopituitarism Syndrome
Causes, incidence, and risk factors:

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If a woman's pituitary gland is starved of blood because she bled severely during childbirth, the gland may lose its ability to function properly. The pituitary gland, which is located at the base of the brain, is responsible for producing a variety of hormones that help regulate growth, reproduction, and metabolism.

Sheehan's syndrome is very rare now because of wide access to good obstetrical care.

Conditions that increase the risk of an obstetric hemorrhage and thus of Sheehan's syndrome include multiple pregnancies (twins or triplets) and abnormalities of the placenta.