Pheochromocytoma and Autonomic Dysfunction

Patients with hypertension due to the release of large amounts of NE from a pheochromocytoma and patients with PAD and postural hypotension due to diminished NE release from adrenergic axon terminals represent the extremes of the spectrum of adrenergic pathophysiolgic findings. It is reasonable to suspect that some more common disorders lie between these extremes and to anticipate that potential roles of the adrenergic nervous system in the pathogenesis of these disorders will be extensively studied with the availability of sensitive isotope-derivative methods for the measurement of catecholamine levels in plasma and in tissue.