What are the common symptoms of pheochromocytoma?

  The clinical symptoms of pheochromocytoma are related to the overproduction of catecholamines and manifest as hypertension, headache, palpitations, hypermetabolic state, hyperglycemia, and excessive sweating. The common symptoms and signs are as follows: i. Cardiovascular system: 1. Hypertension is the main and characteristic manifestation of the disease, which can be intermittent or persistent episodes. Typical paroxysmal attacks are often characterized by a sudden increase in blood pressure, up to 200-300/130-180 mmHg, accompanied by severe headache, generalized sweating, palpitations, tachycardia, arrhythmia, precordial and epigastric urgency, pain, anxiety, fear or a sense of near death, pale skin, nausea, vomiting, abdominal or chest pain, blurred vision, diplopia, and in severe cases, acute left heart failure or Cardiovascular accident.  2, hypotension, shock This disease can also occur hypotension or upright hypotension, or even shock or alternating hypertension and hypotension.  3, cardiac changes in large amounts of catecholamines can lead to catecholamine heart disease, can appear arrhythmias such as pre-phase contraction, paroxysmal tachycardia, ventricular fibrillation. Some cases can cause myocardial degeneration, necrosis, inflammatory changes and other myocardial damage, and the occurrence of heart failure. Long-term, sustained hypertension can lead to left ventricular hypertrophy, heart enlargement and heart failure.  Metabolic disorders: High concentrations of adrenaline act on the central nervous system, especially the sympathetic nervous system and increase oxygen consumption, increase in basal metabolic rate can lead to fever and wasting. Accelerated hepatic glycogenolysis and inhibition of insulin secretion lead to decreased glucose tolerance and increased hepatic glucose xenobiotic. Hypokalemia may occur in a few cases, and hypercalcemia may also be caused by secretion of parathyroid hormone-related peptide by the tumor.  Other manifestations: Excessive catecholamines may cause constipation, intestinal dilatation, proliferative or occlusive endarteritis of blood vessels in the gastrointestinal wall, resulting in intestinal necrosis, hemorrhage or perforation; weakened contraction of gallbladder and increased tension of sphincter of Oddi may lead to bile retention and gallstones. Severe and prolonged disease may lead to renal failure. Patients with intravesical paraganglioma can induce an increase in blood pressure during urination. Redistribution of blood cells occurs in response to large amounts of adrenaline, resulting in increased white blood cell counts in the peripheral blood and sometimes red blood cells as well. In addition, the disease can be part of type II multiple endocrine adenoma syndrome (MEN), which can be associated with medullary thyroid carcinoma, parathyroid adenoma or hyperplasia, and adrenal adenoma or hyperplasia.