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We report three recent cases of severe acute cerebral accident which occurred in the puerperium in women who received bromocriptine for milk suppression. Two patients experienced mild pregnancy-induced hypertension antepartum. Marked blood pressure elevation, above that which had prevailed previously, occurred postpartum in each case. The cerebral accidents manifested between the 6th and 14th days of the puerperium, the typical time for the occurrence of severe side effects from bromocriptine. These complications entailed lasting neurological sequelae in the three mothers who, based on their age, medical history and general state of health, were not significantly predisposed to cerebral accidents.

Recent literary case reports indicate that bromocriptine mesylate, when used for the suppression of lactation in the puerperium, can cause serious and even lethal side effects. The untoward sequelae are attributed to generalized or focal vasospasm affecting the cardiac and/or cerebral bold vessels. Apart from pre-existing hypertension and use in association with other ergot derivatives, the factors predisposing to such complications have not been elucidated, The authors present three atypical bromocriptine related postpartum accidents which may expand the understanding both of the predisposing factors and the potential consequences of bromocriptine related severe side effects. One of the cases raises the suspicion that the manifestations of hyperthyroidism may be aggravated by this method of pharmacologic ablactation. Another observation appears to imply that the drug may trigger the onset of chronic hypertension in women so predisposed. The development of cerebral infarcts, identified by MRI, in a clinically asymptomatic woman, exemplifies the threat of recurrent seizure activity in cases of bromocriptine related stroke.