Adrenalectomy in a child with Cushing’s syndrome: Anaesthetic challenges

Abstract

Cushing’s syndrome is a rare entity, especially in children. The overall incidence of Cushing’s syndrome is approximately 2 to 5 new cases per million people per year. Cushing’s disease is a constellation of co-occurring health conditions and features that pose unique challenges during anaesthesia. A three year old child weighing 21 kg was posted for adrenalectomy. Intraoperatively we faced difficult airway, difficulty in cannulation, difficult regional anaesthesia and hemodynamic fluctuation during tumor resection. Patient was intubated with the aid of an intubating supraglottic device once attempts with fiberoptic failed. This case also highlights the unusual intraoperative hemodynamic fluctuations in adenoma resection similar to that seen in pheochromocytoma.