Consultant Physician North Lancashire and South Westmorland Group of Hospitals

Introduction The diagnosis of phaeochromocytoma is usually made on the clinical presentation and confirmed by the estimation of noradrenaline and adrenaline, or their breakdown products, in the urine. In the presence of oliguria these tests are not possible. A patient is described who became anuric postoperatively and in whom the diagnosis of phaeochromocytoma was assisted by a plasma assay of noradrenaline.