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Objective: To describe the epidemiological, clinical, paraclinical, therapeutic and evolutionary characteristics of of peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM) in the internal medicine department of the Zinder National Hospital (ZNH)., Methods: This was a descriptive cross-sectional study carried out from 2018 to 2022 at the ZNH Department of Internal Medicine. Included were all patients admitted for PPCM who met National Heart Blood and Lung Institute criteria. The data collected was analyzed using Excel and EPI INFO v7., Results: We had collected 100 cases of PPCM out of a total of 8706 hospitalized patients, i.e. a hospital prevalence of 1.14%. The mean age of the patients was 27.9 years ± 7.4 [17-45]. The majority of patients were from underprivileged social strata (n=64). The risk factors for PMPC found were essentially hot bath (n=66), home birth (n=40), natron porridge (n=35) and multiparity (n=57). Cardiac symptomatology appeared postpartum in 56% of patients. Dyspnea was the main symptom in 98% of cases. The physical signs were dominated by the functional systolic murmur (66%). Three quarters (75%) of the patients had congestive heart failure. Electrocardiographic signs were dominated by left ventricular hypertrophy (n=65). Cardiomegaly was present in 94% of patients. Left ventricular ejection fraction was altered in all patients. Impaired renal function was found in 31% of patients. Management was based on a low-sodium diet tripod, diuretics and converting enzyme inhibitors. Two cases of death were recorded., Conclusion: PPCM is common in the Zinder region. It affects young women with several risk factors and is revealed by signs of congestive heart failure. For a better understanding of this still poorly elucidated condition, it is necessary to pursue research efforts.

Introduction: Postpartum ovarian vein thrombosis (POVT) is a rare but serious postpartum complication that can be life-threatening due to its embolic and septic risks. The clinical and paraclinical diagnosis is difficult because of the non-specific signs and the absence of a gold standard for imaging. There is no consensus in the literature on the treatment and follow-up of these patients. The primary objective was to specify the clinical and paraclinical signs suggestive of POVT in order to improve the diagnostic delay. The secondary objectives were to describe the extent of POVT and the proposed immediate therapeutic management., Methods: This was a 10-year retrospective study in a type III maternity hospital, from January 2010 to December 2019, where all patients with an imaging-confirmed diagnosis of POVT were included. We analysed the clinical and paraclinical data and the follow-up of the patients., Results: We included 9 patients with a diagnostic confirmation by imaging. The mean time from first symptoms to diagnosis was 3.3 days (±3.5 days), and only 2 patients (22.2 %) had been diagnosed with POVT before imaging. All patients received curative anticoagulation and 77.8 % (n=7) received antibiotic therapy for POVT. Two patients had a complicated form, 1 with a pulmonary embolism and 1 with a urinary tract compression requiring a urinary diversion with a double J catheter. Five patients (55.6 %) had a thrombophilia check-up., Conclusion: The diagnosis of POVT is difficult and needs to be evoked in front of a painful symptomatology or a fever in postpartum. It can be made by ultrasound, but the injected CT scan specifying the specific search for a POVT remains the imaging examination of choice in order to confirm the diagnosis and eliminate differential diagnoses. Under curative anticoagulation and broad-spectrum antibiotic therapy, the clinical course is generally very favourable. A consultation with an internist makes it possible to define instructions for a subsequent pregnancy., (Copyright © 2022 Société Nationale Française de Médecine Interne (SNFMI). Published by Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Peripartum cardiomyopathy is a rare and unpredictable pregnancy-related pathology. Idiopathic cardiomyopathy is characterized by a heart failure secondary to left ventricular systolic dysfunction appearing towards the end of pregnancy or in the months following delivery with a non-specific clinic presentation. Through reviewing previous research, our critical literature review wishes to bring a concise and objective summarize for a better understanding of physiopathology, evocative symptoms and knowing of factors influencing prognosis in order to standardize peripartum management. The treatment remains mainly symptomatic but other promising treatments are still in development. In conclusion, early detection and treatment allow a better cardiac function recovery reducing cardiac transplantation., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

A 25-year-old woman presented with a spontaneous vaginal expulsion of a 4cm well-circumscribed nodule a few weeks after delivery. An inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor diagnosis was made by morphologic, immunohistochemistry and FISH analysis of the nodule., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

The purpose of this study is to describe a simple, non-expensive, accessible and effective technique of ureterovaginal fistula diagnosis, and to assess the results of surgical management in a resource-constrained hospital. During a campaign of obstetric fistulas repair, we diagnosed ureterovaginal fistulas by vaginal exam with the blue methylene test associated to abdominal ultrasonography, two simple and non-expensive explorations which permitted to identify ureterovaginal fistula and to do differential diagnosis with vesicovaginal fistula. The management was surgery, by ureterovesical reimplantation. Four ureterovaginal fistulas have been diagnosed in 32 women presented with obstetrical fistula. The mean age of those fistulas was 4.85 years; it was located on the left ureter in three cases, on the right in one case. The ureteral lesion was consecutive to a caesarean section in all patients and sited on the pelvic segment of ureter. In three patients, diagnosis was performed by the negativity of the blue test and unilateral dilation of ureter and kidney while the discovery was done during the treatment of vesicovaginal and rectovaginal fistulas associated in the last patient. After effects of surgery were simple, characterized by disappearance of urine leakage and dilation of ureter kidney. In resources-constrained context, techniques such as blue test and ultrasonography are enough to perform diagnosis of ureterovaginal fistula. Ureterovesical reimplantation is an effective therapeutic method for diagnosing ureterovaginal fistula.

Objectives: Postpartum ovarian vein thrombophlebitis is an uncommon complication that may threaten mothers' lives. The extension of thrombosis in the inferior vena cava causes a pulmonary embolisme risk and requires urgent care. The main objective of this study was, from a series of patients, to determine the clinical and paraclincal signs to suggest the diagnosis of postpartum ovarian vein thrombosis. Secondary objectives were to assess the location and extent of thrombosis and the therapeutic management of this disease at the University Hospital of Amiens., Methods: A retrospective study was performed in the Obstetrics and Gynecology department of Amiens University Hospital between January 2011 and May 2015. Were included in this study all patients for whom the diagnosis of postpartum ovarian thrombophlebitis was confirmed by computed tomography., Results: Thirteen patients had postpartum thrombosis of the ovarian vein. The incidence of this disease in our series was 0.13%. The average age of patients was 30 years. The median onset of symptoms was located on the 4th day; in 92% of cases, they appeared within 10 days after delivery. The clinical picture was not specific and the main symptoms were fever (46.1%) and abdominal pain (53.8%). Biologically inflammatory syndrome was commonly found with elevated leukocytes and CRP. Bacteriological samples were in most cases negative. Sixty-nine percent of lesions concerned the right ovarian vein; 23% had renal extension, 53.8% had inferior vena cava extension and 23% got complicated with pulmonary embolism. No maternal deaths were reported. One hundred percent of patients received anticoagulation at curative dose, the mean duration of which was 6 months. In all, 84.6% of patients received in combination antibiotic therapy with oral and parenteral initially broad spectrum., Conclusion: Ovarian postpartum thrombosis is a rare complication that must be evoked and sought, especially in front of a non-septic febrile abdominal pain syndrome in postpartum., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Ovarian vein thrombosis is a rare, but potentially serious postpartum complication. In 80% of the cases, it occurs on the right side and in less than 6% on the left side; it is bilateral in 14% of cases. The usual clinical features include abdominal pain, fever and leucocytosis. However, the diagnosis is often complicated by other non specific signs and symptoms. Ovarian vein thrombosis may cause sepsis, pulmonary thromboembolism, and thrombosis of the inferior vena cava and the renal vein. The diagnosis can be established by CT scan or nuclear magnetic resonance imaging, which has a high sensitivity and specificity. Treatment for the ovarian vein thrombosis includes antibiotics and anticoagulation. The complications can sometimes be surgically managed. Prompt diagnosis and treatment can decrease the morbidity and the mortality. Nowadays, the fatal issue is rare as the appropriate treatment is quickly instaured.

Objectives: Focusing on the mother's postpartum psychological and psychiatric disorders., Method: Bibliographic research carried out by the data banks and the recommendations of learned societies from the following French words translated into English: postpartum, perinatal, postpartum, breastfeeding, birth, weaning, peripartum, lactation, postnatal, mood disorders, anxiety disorders, depression, anxiety, psychosis. These keywords were combined with the following words: prevalence, incidence, recurrence, development, identification, scale, assessment, test, father, man, husband, partner, hormones, treatment, intervention, prevention, testing, therapy, medicine, medication, to prescribe, prescription., Results: The months following the birth are a transitional period, and psychological alterations concern all parents (LE2). It is more difficult in case of psychosocial risk factors (LE2). In situations of proven psychological difficulties, the impact on the psycho-emotional development of children can be important (LE3). Among these difficulties, postpartum depression is the most common situation. Given its prevalence (about 13 %) and because of its implications for the entire family, it's an important health issue (LE2). However, the risk is generally higher in the perinatal period for all mental disorders (LE3). Pregnancy and postpartum are periods favorable to develop links with health professionals. New parents are often looking for support to deal with the upheavals associated with the birth. The postpartum period is thus for clinicians a unique opportunity to address the mental, social and somatic aspects of the health of their patients (professional agreement). Early detection and treatment of mental disorders are essential for family functioning and parent-child relationship (professional agreement)., Conclusion: The issue of screening and prevention of postpartum mental disorders is fundamental and requires involvement of all professional receiving parents and babies in the aftermath of the birth., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Introduction: We report a case of post-partum hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis with marked macrovesicular hepatic steatosis., Case Report: A 39-year-old woman was admitted for hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis with a serum ferritin level of 103,380 μg/L. Thoracic abdominal and pelvic CT-scan showed hepatomegaly with marked steatosis. Liver biopsy confirmed macrovesicular steatosis. The diagnosis was a primary hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis. After treatment failure including corticosteroids, intravenous immunoglobulin, tetracycline, acyclovir, antituberculosis drugs, and anti-IL1R therapy, clinical improvement was obtained with intravenous cyclosporine. At 4-year follow-up, the patient remained asymptomatic., Conclusion: Several aspects of this report of primary hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis are remarkable and include the association with post-partum, the severe radiologic and histologic macrovesicular steatosis, and the dramatic efficacy of cyclosporine., (Copyright © 2014 Société nationale française de médecine interne (SNFMI). Published by Elsevier SAS. All rights reserved.)

The peripartum cardiomyopathy is a rare form of dilated cardiomyopathy resulting from alteration of angiogenesis toward the end of pregnancy. The diagnosis is based on the association of clinical heart failure and systolic dysfunction assessed by echocardiography or magnetic resonance imaging. Diagnoses to rule out are myocardial infarction, amniotic liquid embolism, myocarditis, inherited cardiomyopathy, and history of treatment by anthracycline. Risk factors are advance maternal age (>30), multiparity, twin pregnancy, African origin, obesity, preeclampsia, gestational hypertension, and prolonged tocolytic therapy. Treatment of acute phase is identical to usual treatment of acute systolic heart failure. After delivery, VKA treatment should be discussed in case of systolic function <25% because of higher risk of thrombus. A specific treatment by bromocriptine can be initiated on a case-by-case basis. Complete recovery of systolic function is observed in 50% of cases. The mortality risk is low. Subsequent pregnancy should be discouraged, especially if systolic function did not recover., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Introduction: Few studies have evaluated urine postvoid residuals (PVRs) and their risk factors during the post-partum (PP) period. The aim of this prospective study was to screen postvoid residuals in a cohort of patients in PP, and to identify the risk factors., Materials and Methods: For three months, patients in PP were given an evaluation of their PVR (ultrasounds method) after a spontaneous urination. Clinical data as regards delivery were collected., Results: One hundred and sixty-eight patients were included. Among them, 61% had a urine volume at the first urination over 500 mL, and 52% presented with a pathological PVR (PVR over 150 mL for a urine volume over 150 mL). The median PVR was 153.50 mL. The median volume of the first spontaneous urination was 400 mL. Among patients with a pathological PVR, the total duration of the labor and the duration of its second phase were significantly longer (P=0.003 and P<0.05, respectively), and the volume of the first urination was higher. Indwelling catheterization during the delivery decreased the volume of the first spontaneous urination (volume over 500 mL in 28% vs 72% of patients, P=0.017) but was not associated with a decreased PVR in non-pathological deliveries. Instrumental deliveries were associated with higher PVRs than caesarean or physiological deliveries (244 mL, 180 mL et 156 mL; P=0.033). A bacteriuria was not significantly associated with PVR (54% vs 49%, P>0.05)., Conclusion: We were able to identify risk factors for PVR in the PP, such as the duration of labor, instrumental delivery and elevated volume of the first urination after delivery., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Postpartum psychosis occurs in 1-2/1000 childbearing women. It is commonly admitted that it belongs to bipolar disorder with psychotic features. A strong link between puerperal psychosis and bipolar disorder has been established. Symptoms include rapid mood fluctuations, confusion, delusions, hallucinations and bizarre behaviour. It can lead to devastating consequences. It is a psychiatric emergency that requires an urgent evaluation to exclude any organic cause. Therefore, early identification and appropriate treatment are critical. A quick and effective relief is necessary for maternal and child health and mother-infant relationship. Perinatal health professionals have to be accurate screening postpartum psychosis symptoms and have to educate patients and their family.

We report the management of patient with acute abdominal pain in the immediate post-partum caesarean section performed in the context of preeclampsia. Acute portal vein thrombosis is diagnosed, in a patient with no personal or family history of venous thrombosis. Blood tests showed a protein C and S deficiencies. Portal vein thrombosis is an extremely rare occurrence in pregnancy and postpartum., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Osteoarticular tuberculosis was frequent throughout the world a decade ago but antituberculous chemotherapy and prophylactic measures have clearly contributed to the reduction of its frequency. However, Pott's disease is frequently complicated by an abscess and some locations are exceptional on account of their gravity. We report a case of dorsal spondylodiscitis with a voluminous Pott's abscess compressing the mediastinal structures with a risk of perforating into the trachea., (Copyright © 2014 SPLF. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Background: It is desirable that nursing mothers should return to normal activities so as to encourage early care of the newborn. This desire will be met if the common postpartum maternal morbidities are identified and managed accordingly., Objective: To identify and characterize postpartum pain in the immediate postpartum period after vaginal or caesarean birth., Methods: Women who delivered in our hospital; over 18 years, delivered of a live neonate and were in hospital for at least 2 days were studied. The socio-demographic characteristics, site of pain and self report of pain were recorded. The mothers were interviewed to describe the nature of postpartum pain using the Short-Form McGill Pain Questionnaire., Results: A total of 116 patients participated in the study; 50/116 were nulliparous, and 100/116 received prenatal care. The incidence of pain was 82.8%. 55/74 women who had vaginal delivery and 41/42 post c-section women had pain. Only 51/96 women reported their pain and a good proportion of the women received some form of analgesia for the pain. Post c-section women were more likely to use affective descriptors than those who had vaginal delivery. The use of affective descriptors provoked higher VAS scores., Conclusion: Pain in the immediate postpartum period is common and more severe in women who had caesarean section than vaginal delivery. There is need to improve current methods of managing postpartum pain in the sub-region.

Cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) is the examination of choice to understand mechanisms responsible for dyspnea in patients without significant medical history. The three observations illustrate the major interest of the CPET in this frequent situation in clinical practice. A 68-year-old man who has severe dyspnea in her leisure time hiking in the mountains, a 25-year cyclist presenting disabling dyspnea follow competitors racing neo-professional cyclists, and a 37-year woman who developed a persistent dyspnea, 6 months after delivery. In these three situations, CPET determined the disorder responsible for the symptoms without increasing the diagnostic tests., (Copyright © 2013 SPLF. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Peripartum cardiomyopathy is defined by the development of heart failure with left ventricular systolic dysfunction at the end of pregnancy or in the months following childbirth. Its diagnosis remains difficult due to lack of specificity. Its pathophysiology is still imperfectly understood, but involves both genetic and pregnancy related factors. From a therapeutic viewpoint, the recommendations of the European Society of Cardiology on heart failure are used, but the stage of pregnancy must be taken into account for the treatment choice. The chances of recovery are greater than in other non-ischemic cardiomyopathies. However, an early diagnosis remains crucial to increase the probability of recovery particularly with bromocriptine, which has shown positive results in recent years.

Peripartum cardiomyopathy occurs in women with no prior history of cardiac dysfunction, and is presented by left heart failure. It occurs late in pregnancy or in the months after delivery. Rare in Europe, it is not well-known by obstetricians. The prognosis can be good with restitutio in integrum of the maternal cardiac function but the outcome can be dramatic and lead to death of the patient as the case in this report., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

β-thalassemia is a genetic hemoglobinopathy, which can cause hypercoagulability, vessel wall damages and thromboembolic events. Spontaneous subarachnoidal hemorrhages are not commonly described in this affection. We report subarachnoidal hemorrhage, observed during the post-partum period in a 27-year-old woman suffering from β-thalassemia major. Brain MRI revealed complex vascular abnormalities: intracranial carotid occlusion, carotid micro-aneurisms, abnormally developed deep perforators and cortical arteries., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

We describe a case report of a young Gabonese lady who presented an acute pulmonary oedema and we suspected a paripartum cardiomyopathy. Subsequent investigations showed isolated left ventricular noncompaction. A few months later, the same disease was disclosed at her 9 year-old son who presented a cardiac insufficiency. Therefore, we suspect a family form of left ventricular noncompaction. And it is the first description in subsaharan Africa. The hereditary character of this new form of cardiomyopathy linked to a genetic mutation on the X chromosome is well known. This disease is associated with heart failure, high incidence of systemic thromboembolism complications or ventricular arrhythmia. The echocardiography and the cardiac magnetic resonance imaging has been reported to be tools for diagnosis. In Africa, access to these techniques remains a privilege. So the discovery of illness is often late and the family screening are special. In our area, the therapeutic management is the medical treatment of heart failure. Implatable cardioverter defibrillator or heart transplantation are not available. So long-term prognosis of our patients with congestive heart failure stays poor. With best equipment in our hospitals and good training of African cardiologists, we should improve the management of our patients., (Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

We report the case of a 30-year-old, -7 myopic woman presenting with visual acuity decreased to 3/10 P4 in her right eye and 8/10 P3 in her left eye one month after uncomplicated delivery. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) demonstrated a stage III macular hole (MH) measuring 100 μ with intraretinal cysts in her right eye and a 100 μ stage Ib MH in her left eye. The stage III MH grew to 440 μ, requiring surgery to close it at 3 months, while the stage Ib hole resolved spontaneously. While myopia is a well-known risk factor for MH, the bilateral nature of this case and the context implicate the role of delivery. Thus, MH may be a cause of visual loss in the postpartum period. Diagnosis may be facilitated by OCT., (Copyright © 2012. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS.)

Objective: To describe the incidence and the etiologies of acute pulmonary edema (APE) and the diagnostic procedure used during pregnancy and immediate post-partum., Materials and Methods: We analyzed records from a search of codes of heart failure and APE as well as from the term "pulmonary edema" in computerized obstetric records from 2002 to 2010 in a university center of level 3. We identified maternal characteristics, the term of appearance and route of delivery, the time between symptoms and diagnosis, additional tests performed, and data from echocardiography., Results: Fifteen patients had an APE during pregnancy or in the immediate post-partum period during the study period (0.05%). The mean age was 28.6 years and the mean term of appearance was 31.2±3.1 weeks of amenorrhea. The diagnosis was made in 11 cases (73.3%) before delivery and in four during post-partum. The main etiology was preeclampsia (46.6%) followed by heart disease (26.7%), then tocolysis and overfilling (13.3%). In 55% of cases, we found a diagnostic wander characterized by carrying out further unnecessary tests. The echocardiography has led to a change in management in 27.3% of cases., Conclusion: The APE is a rare event during pregnancy and the post-partum period and its main etiology is preeclampsia. Some other etiologies are avoidable like the use of beta-agonists by intravenous route. The diagnosis is sometimes difficult, but the realization of a chest X-ray, a simple and inexpensive test, is enough to confirm it., (Copyright © 2012. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS.)

Objectives: Identify the potential predictors of postpartum post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in primiparous mothers., Materials and Methods: This longitudinal prospective study evaluated the prevalence of obstetric complications and psychiatric disorders (anxiety, depression, psychic dissociation, PTSD, personality) in the immediate postpartum and after 3-6 months., Results: Among 456 hospitalized primiparous mothers, 314 were recruited and 212 followed-up prospectively. The prevalence of PTSD symptoms was high and stable through the postpartum (12.7% versus 13.6%). Significant risk factors were associated with postpartum PTSD: social isolation, celibacy or divorce (OR=6.6; P<0.02), history of abortion (OR=6.2; P<0.01) or of infertility (OR=10.4; P<0.007), too long subjective length of labour (OR=3.5; P<0.03), mothers' perceptions of obstetric complications (OR=18.5; P<0.003), high anxiety level at the maternity hospital (OR=3.9; P<0.03), PTSD symptoms after childbirth (OR=6.7; P<0.01) and dependent personality disorder (OR=23.2; P<0.001)., Conclusion: Subjective experience of childbirth, history of obstetric complications, social isolation and dependent personality disorder and high level of stress-anxiety after childbirth are significant predictive factors of postpartum PTSD (3-6 months). The early identification of these factors should lead to early therapeutic intervention in the mothers at risk of PTSD., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Pregnancy-associated osteoporosis usually appears during the first pregnancy and does not affect the followings. We report two cases where non-traumatic fractures have been diagnosed shortly after delivery of second pregnancies. Wide investigations could not find a cause of secondary osteoporosis. In the first case we came to the diagnosis of pregnancy-associated osteoporosis and an intravenous treatment of ibandronate has been prescribed. In the second case the bone mineral density (BMD) being almost normal and the localisation of the fracture being atypical, we concluded to a fracture of non-osteoporotic origin, probably due to mechanical stress during pregnancy. No therapy against osteoporosis has been prescribed.

Objectives: To investigate the incidence of pelvi-abdominal hematoma, to identify associated factors and to describe modalities of diagnosis and management., Patients and Methods: A retrospective observational study including all patients presenting with a pelvi-abdominal hematoma among women who delivered between January 2005 and December 2010 in Toulouse university hospital., Results: Twenty five thousand, one hundred and eighty-four women delivered during the study period and nine women were included (estimated incidence: 1/4200 deliveries). The main associated obstetrical factors were perineal injuries (episiotomy or lacerations) in 100% of cases and instrumental extraction (spatula) in 50% of cases. Arterial embolisation was performed in one third of cases. No death was observed., Conclusion: Pelvi-abdominal hematoma is a severe and infrequent postpartum complication. A better knowledge of clinical and radiological presentations together with obstetrical associated factors will allow an early diagnosis and a multidisciplinary management., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Polyneuropathies of pregnancy and the postpartum period are considered rare but also understudied in Sub-Saharan Africa. They are usually related to a thiamine deficiency in under- or malnourished women. Our aim was to study the clinical and etiological factors of this disease in the Yalgado Ouédraogo University Hospital of Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso. Our prospective cross-sectional study lasted for 20 months, from August 2008 to April 2010. During the period, 27 women received this diagnosis. Their mean age was 27.5 years (range: 20 to 38). All but two (92%) had no or a very small or a modest income. Their monotonous diet was based on local cereals and available irregularly. Almost all (24/27, 89%) had developed one or more diseases during pregnancy, primarily excessive vomiting (70%) and severe anorexia (89%). Sensory symptoms were present in 70% of cases, and sensorimotor symptoms in 30%. The cause was always a deficiency-related polyneuropathy. All patients were treated with vitamin B complex and all symptoms disappeared by the third month of treatment. We conclude that polyneuropathies during pregnancy and during the postpartum delivery occur in women eating an unbalanced diet and living in a deprived social and economic situation and that it is manifested by serious vomiting and anorexia.

Neurologic complications of post-partum are serious and usually secondary to eclampsia or stroke. We here report a 26-year-old female who presented with severe headaches, blurred vision, and repeated generalized seizures secondary to posterior reversible encephalopathy that occurred after a caesarean section for fetal death in utero. Outcome was favourable. Although uncommon, this neurologic complication of the post-partum should be discussed in the presence of any sign of encephalopathy occurring in the context of acute hypertension., (Copyright © 2010 Société nationale française de médecine interne (SNFMI). Published by Elsevier SAS. All rights reserved.)