A rare cause of maternal death: liver and inferior vena cava rupture due to previously undiagnosed Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome type IV.

The authors would like to thank all their colleagues, the nursing staff, the Acute Pain Service members and Güven Braune, for their participation in conducting the study. The authors would also like to thank Michael Hanna, PhD, for editing the manuscript. This study was supported by a grant for C. Höhne from the B. Braun Foundation (Melsungen, Germany). The results of this study were presented in part at the 24th Congress of the European Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Therapy in Berlin, September 2005.