Abstract Disclosure: M.N. Abdou: None. H. Alhumaidi: None. Background: Current recommendations for steroids replacement in the immediate post-operative (post op) period after transsphenoidal surgery (TSS) for patients with Cushing’s Disease (CD) are heterogenous and can be misleading. Monitoring daily morning cortisol for 72 hours post TSS with replacing steroids only after detecting low morning cortisol or signs of adrenal insufficiency (AI) has been mentioned in several studies. While some studies recommend either empiric steroids replacement on discharge regardless of status of remission or longer hospital stay for closer cortisol monitoring, others recommended monitoring for 3-4 days and starting steroids on discharge only if morning cortisol was < 415 nmol/L. Case: 60 years old female with a history of type 2 diabetes mellitus, hypertension and dyslipidemia was referred for an evaluation of a pituitary macroadenoma. She had an incidental finding of a pituitary mass measuring 25 mm on a CT brain obtained after a fall 3 months prior to her current visit. MRI pituitary gland revealed a 25x23x22 mm suprasellar mass with cavernous sinus invasion. She reported weight gain and worsening of diabetes control over the 2 years prior to her presentation. On exam, weight was 80 kg, BMI 32.5, BP 110/69, vital signs were otherwise normal. She had central obesity, facial plethora, and frontal hair thinning. Hormonal workup showed elevated 1 mg dexamethasone suppression test: 341 nmol/L (<55). 24h UFC was also high 233 nmol/24 hours (38-208). Morning cortisol 15.5 mcg/dl (6-18) with ACTH 228 pg/ml (7.2-63.3). Prolactin 581 mIU/L (58-418). FSH and LH were at the premenopausal range. TSH, FT4, and IGF-1 were normal. HBA1C 8%. Results were consistent with CD with central hypogonadism and mild elevation of prolactin likely due to stalk effect. Patient was admitted to the hospital for TSS. She had no surgical complications, and no steroids were used to monitor remission. Daily morning cortisol was measured after the surgery, readings were (1631, 668, 469, 224, 318, 110 nmol/l) day 1-6 (D1-D6) post op. She was started on oral Hydrocortisone (HC) 15 mg in the morning and 10 mg in the afternoon on D6 post op after documentation of cortisol level of 110 nmol/l. She was vitally stable and had no signs of AI before starting steroids. 1 day after starting oral HC she developed hypotension and hyponatremia. IV HC 100 mg was given immediately followed by 50 mg every 6 hours. Blood pressure improved with stress dose steroids. She was discharged home on HC 20 mg three times daily, tapered to reach 15, 10 over a period of 2 weeks. Conclusion: We present a case of CD that had a nadir morning cortisol on D6 post op in whom a diagnosis of fatal AI would have been missed if recommendations from some studies were followed. This case highlights the importance of prolonged monitoring for adrenal insufficiency if steroids were not used after surgery for CD. Presentation: 6/1/2024
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