Pituitary Incidentalomas Research Articles

Inferior petrosal sinus sampling in differential diagnosis of ACTH-dependent hypercortisolism

Survival rate of patients with endogenous hypercortisolism, as well as complications reversibility and treatment effectiveness depends on on-time and precise diagnosis. In case of apparent clinical picture with all laboratory tests confirmation, the most challenging appears the differential diagnosis of ACTH-dependent hypercortisolism as none laboratory test can reveal the genesis of ACTH hypersecretion. When there is no visualization of the pituitary adenoma, the only method to confirm the diagnosis is bilateral inferior petrosal sinus sampling (BIPSS). Nevertheless, around 16% of patients have inactive pituitary incidentalomas in combination with carcinoid tumor of other localization. Epidemiologic researches show that the size of such incidentalomas tend to be less than 6 mm. According to clinical guidelines in case of such small neoplasms it’s recommended to perform bilateral inferior petrosal sinus sampling. This clinical case represent a rare exception to the rules when there is a pituitary adenoma more than 6 mm and mild hypercortisolism, possibly as the result of lung carcinoid tumor.

A comparative, population-based analysis of pituitary incidentalomas vs clinically manifesting sellar masses.

PurposeSellar masses may present either with clinical manifestations of mass effect/hormonal dysfunction (CMSM) or incidentally on imaging (pituitary incidentaloma (PI)). This novel population-based study compares these two entities.MethodsRetrospective analysis of all patients within a provincial pituitary registry between January 2006 and June 2014.ResultsNine hundred and three patients were included (681 CMSM, 222 PI). CMSM mainly presented with secondary hormone deficiencies (SHDs) or stalk compression (29.7%), whereas PIs were found in association with neurological complaints (34.2%) (P < 0.0001). PIs were more likely to be macroadenomas (70.7 vs 49.9%; P < 0.0001). The commonest pathologies among CMSM were prolactinomas (39.8%) and non-functioning adenomas (NFAs) (50%) in PI (P < 0.0001). SHDs were present in 41.3% CMSM and 31.1% PI patients (P < 0.0001) and visual field deficit in 24.2 and 29.3%, respectively (P = 0.16). CMSM were more likely to require surgery (62.9%) than PI (35.8%) (P < 0.0005). The commonest surgical indications were impaired vision and radiological evidence of optic nerve compression. Over a follow-up period of 5.7 years for CMSM and 5.0 years for PI, tumour growth/recurrence occurred in 7.8% of surgically treated CMSM and 2.6% without surgery and PI, 0 and 4.9%, respectively (P = 1.0). There were no significant differences in the risk of new-onset SHD in CMSM vs PI in those who underwent surgery (P = 0.7) and those who were followed without surgery (P = 0.58).ConclusionsThis novel study compares the long-term trends of PI with CMSM, highlighting the need for comprehensive baseline and long-term radiological and hormonal evaluations in both entities.

Gonadotrophic pituitary incidentaloma as the cause premature ovarian insufficiency

Objective: evaluate clinical significance pituitary incidentalomas, apparently derived from gonadotropocytes.&#x0D; Design: follow-up study. Patients. Three observations of pituitary microadenomas in patients whose cause for treatment was prolonged amenorrhea. Diagnosed uterine hypoplasia, decreased ovarian reserve, decreased bone mass. Patients combined expressed psycho-emotional symptoms (depression, neuroticism up to mental disorders in one case). The diagnosis of a gonadotrophic incidentaloma is suspected after exclusion of clinical and laboratory signs of prolactinoma, somatotrophic, corticotrophic and thyrotrophic adenoma.&#x0D; Results. In two cases, the clinical picture of severe estrogenic failure was combined with high concentrations FSH, LH and low concentrations of anti-mullerian hormone (AMH). The increase in gonadotrophines, obviously, was both a reaction to a decreased production of estrogens, and the result of their hypersecretion by adenoma. In the observed cases there was no development of ovarian cysts, characteristic for patients with gonadotrophic adenomas, which can be explained by a reduced ovarian reserve. In the third case marked initially normal secretion of FSH and LH, not corresponding to a low concentration of sex steroids. Further there was a complete cessation of the secretion of FSH and LH with a simultaneous rapid decrease in the secretion of AMH. Given the small size of adenomas, in all cases selection of tactics for dynamic observation. All patients were prescribed hormone replacement therapy.&#x0D; Conclusion. For patients with premature ovarian failure, it is advisable to carry out MRI with contrast enhancement to exclude pituitary adenoma.

Temporal Galc deletion reveals a critical vulnerable period in the pathogenesis of Krabbe leukodystrophy

The availability of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has led to an increase in the detection of pituitary incidentaloma (PI). However, there are no robust data on surgical treatment of PI on which to base therapeutic recommendations. This study was performed to investigate the significance of surgery for asymptomatic nonfunctioning pituitary adenoma (NFPA) among PIs.A total of 180 patients that underwent tumor resection of pituitary adenoma via the transsphenoidal approach between 2005 and 2017 were reviewed. Thirty-three consecutive patients with subjectively asymptomatic NFPA were included in this study. Our surgical indications for asymptomatic NFPAs were categorized as follows: macroadenoma with optic chiasma compression (group A, n = 14), solid tumor ≥2 cm in size (group B, n = 7), and tumor growth on follow-up MRI (group C, n = 12). The clinical outcomes were analyzed accordingly.Seven patients (50%) in group A showed subjective improvement of visual function after tumor resection even though they had no complaints preoperatively. On the other hand, no changes occurred in any cases in group B or group C. Although there were no critical complications in this series, the incidence of nonnegligible nasal complications was relatively high (24.2%) and may decrease the patient's quality of life.Surgery should be recommended for asymptomatic NFPA with optic chiasma compression to improve visual outcome. On the other hand, immediate intervention for other asymptomatic NFPA to reduce the likelihood of the appearance of tumor-related symptoms remains questionable considering its invasiveness to the nose.

Epidemiology, clinical presentation and diagnosis of non-functioning pituitary adenomas.

Non-functioning pituitary adenomas (NFPAs) are benign pituitary neoplasms that do not cause a hormonal hypersecretory syndrome. An improved understanding of their epidemiology, clinical presentation and diagnosis is needed. A literature review was performed using Pubmed to identify research reports and clinical case series on NFPAs. They account for 14-54% of pituitary adenomas and have a prevalence of 7-41.3/100,000 population. Their standardized incidence rate is 0.65-2.34/100,000 and the peak occurence is from the fourth to the eighth decade. The clinical spectrum of NFPAs varies from being completely asymptomatic to causing significant hypothalamic/pituitary dysfunction and visual field compromise due to their large size. Most patients present with symptoms of mass effect, such as headaches, visual field defects, ophthalmoplegias, and hypopituitarism but also hyperprolactinaemia due to pituitary stalk deviation and less frequently pituitary apoplexy. Non-functioning pituitary incidentalomas are found on brain imaging performed for an unrelated reason. Diagnostic approach includes magnetic resonance imaging of the sellar region, laboratory evaluations, screening for hormone hypersecretion and for hypopituitarism, and a visual field examination if the lesion abuts the optic nerves or chiasm. This article reviews the epidemiology, clinical behaviour and diagnostic approach of non-functioning pituitary adenomas.

Management of nonfunctioning pituitary adenomas (NFAs): observation.

Clinically nonfunctioning pituitary adenomas (NFAs) range from those causing significant hypothalamic/pituitary dysfunction and visual field compromise due to their large size to those being completely asymptomatic. In the absence of hypersecretion, hypopituitarism or visual field defects, patients with NFAs may be followed by periodic surveillance using MRI to detect tumor enlargement. In some cases, endocrine tests are also needed during observation to discover new pituitary dysfunction. Enlargement of NFAs without treatment occurs in about 10% of microadenomas and 23% of macroadenomas. Growth of a pituitary incidentaloma, the development of visual field defects or the development of hypopituitarism are potential indications for surgery during follow up.

Trends in surgery, hospital admissions and imaging for pituitary adenomas in Australia.

There is a paucity of epidemiological information on treatment and imaging of pituitary adenomas in Australia. Australian data on pituitary surgery, hospital admissions for pituitary adenomas, and pituitary imaging on patients 15 years and over were obtained from administrative databases between 2000/2001 and 2014/2015. Changes over time and by age and sex were assessed. In 2014/15 there were 37.7 pituitary procedures/million population, corresponding to a 35.4% (p < 0.05) increase over the 2000/2001 rate. Overall, most (87.2%) procedures were partial excisions of pituitary gland via transsphenoidal surgery (TSS). Admissions for acromegaly increased from 7.1/million in 2000/2001 to 17.2/million in 2003/2004 and then decreased to 6.5/million in 2014/2015. The average age-adjusted rate of pituitary imaging over the study period was 689.6/million/year, which increased significantly (p < 0.05). There was a significant increase in pituitary MRIs (p < 0.05) and a significant decline in pituitary CTs (p < 0.05). Surgical procedure rates were correlated with the pituitary imaging rates (r = 0.62, p < 0.05). Pituitary surgery rates increased between 2000/2001 and 2014/2015. The most common procedure was partial excision of the pituitary gland via TSS. Admissions for pituitary neoplasms increased over the study while admissions for acromegaly rose to their highest rate in 2003/2004 and then decreased. There was a substantial increase in the rate of pituitary imaging, which may have resulted in increased detection of pituitary incidentalomas. The underlying reasons for the increased rate of pituitary surgery, and the non-sustained increased rate of admissions for acromegaly are unclear and warrant further investigation.

Clinical features and natural history of clinically non-functioning pituitary incidentalomas

Clinical features and natural history of clinically non-functioning pituitary incidentalomas

A case of tuberous sclerosis complex associated with non-functioning pituitary incidentaloma and moderate hyperprolactinaemia

Searchable abstracts of presentations at key conferences in endocrinology ISSN 1470-3947 (print) | ISSN 1479-6848 (online)

Nonfunctioning pituitary incidentaloma - delayed onset of acromegaly and concomitant primary adrenocortical insufficiency

Nonfunctioning pituitary incidentaloma - delayed onset of acromegaly and concomitant primary adrenocortical insufficiency

Natural history of a large cohort of pituitary incidentalomas in Italy

Natural history of a large cohort of pituitary incidentalomas in Italy

MANAGEMENT OF ENDOCRINE DISEASE: Pituitary 'incidentaloma': neuroradiological assessment and differential diagnosis.

Pituitary incidentalomas are a by-product of modern imaging technology. The term 'incidentaloma' is neither a distinct diagnosis nor a pathological entity. Rather, it is a collective designation for different entities that are discovered fortuitously, requiring a working diagnosis based on the input of the radiologist, endocrinologist and often a neurosurgeon. In addition to pathological conditions affecting the pituitary gland, a thorough knowledge of the radiological characteristics of normal variants and technical artifacts is required to arrive at an accurate differential diagnosis. After careful radiological and hormonal evaluation, the vast majority of pituitary incidentalomas turn out to be non-functioning pituitary microadenomas and Rathke's cleft cysts (RCCs). Based on the low growth potential of non-functioning pituitary microadenomas and RCCs, periodic MRI surveillance is currently considered the optimal management strategy. Stricter follow-up is required for macroadenomas, as increases in size occur more frequently.

Analysis and natural history of pituitary incidentalomas.

Pituitary incidentalomas (PI) are frequently found on brain imaging. Despite their high prevalence, little is known about their long-term natural history and there are limited guidelines on how to monitor them. We conducted a retrospective study to compare epidemiological characteristics at presentation and the natural history of PI in population-based vs referral-based registries from two tertiary-care referral centers in Canada. A total of 328 patients with PI were included, of whom 73% had pituitary adenomas (PA) and 27% had non-pituitary sellar masses. The commonest indications for imaging were headache (28%), dizziness (12%) and stroke/transient ischemic attack (TIA) (9%). There was a slight female preponderance (52%) with a median age of 55 years at diagnosis; 71% presented as macroadenomas (>10mm). Of PA, 25% were functioning tumors and at presentation 36% of patients had evidence of secondary hormonal deficiency (SHD). Of the total cohort, 68% were treated medically or conservatively whereas 32% required surgery. Most tumors (87% in non-surgery and 68% in post-surgery group) remained stable during follow-up. Similarly, 84% of patients in the non-surgery and 73% in the surgery group did not develop additional SHD during follow-up. The diagnosis of non-functioning adenoma was a risk factor for tumor enlargement and a change in SHD status was associated with a change in tumor size. Our data suggest that most PI seen in tertiary-care referral centers present as macroadenomas and may frequently be functional, often requiring medical or surgical intervention.

Spontaneous Involution of Rathke's Cleft Cysts without Visual Symptoms.

BackgroundThere have been various reports in the literature regarding the conservative management of pituitary apoplexy, pituitary incidentalomas and Rathke cleft cysts (RCCs). However, to the best of our knowledge, spontaneous involution of cystic sellar mass has rarely been reported. We report 14 cases of cystic sellar masses with spontaneous involution.MethodsA total of 14 patients with spontaneous regression of cystic sellar masses in our hospital were included. The median age was 35 years (range, 5–67), and 8 patients were male. Clinical symptoms, hormone study and MRI were evaluated for all patients. The initial MRI showed all 14 patients with RCCs. Eight patients were presented with sudden onset of headache, and 1 patient with dizziness. Another patient, a 5-year-old child, was presented with delayed growth. Three patients had no symptoms via regular medical work up. All 14 patients had no visual symptoms. The follow-up period ranged from 5.7 to 42.8 months, with the mean of 17.3 months.ResultsThe mean initial tumor size was 1.29 cm3 (range, 0.05 to 3.23). After involution, the tumor size decreased to 0.23 cm3 (range, 0 to 0.68) without any treatments. Repeated MRI showed a spontaneous decrease in tumor volume by 78% (range, 34 to 99). The initial MRI showed that the tumor was in contact with the optic chiasm in 7 patients, while compressing on the optic chiasm in 3 patients. Five patients were initially treated with hormone replacement therapy due to hormone abnormality. After the follow-up period, only 2 patients needed a long-term hormone replacement therapy.ConclusionThe spontaneous involution of RCCs is not well quantified before. Their incidence has not been well demonstrated, but this phenomenon might be underreported. Conservative management can be a treatment option in some RCCs without visual symptoms, even in those that are large in size and in contact with the optic nerve via imaging study.

下垂体腫瘍に対する手術適応

下垂体腫瘍, 特に機能性下垂体腺腫およびincidentalomaに対する手術適応について述べる.

Incidentaloma adrenal

Con el uso creciente de las tecnologías en imágenes diagnósticas, se han descubierto lesiones adrenales en pacientes sin sospecha o manifestaciones clínicas de una enfermedad originada en las glándulas suprarrenales, hallazgo conocido como incidentaloma suprarrenal. Estas lesiones pueden ser benignas como los mielolipomas, infecciones por hongos y micobacterias o lesiones infrecuentes como los schwanomas. También se pueden encontrar adenomas, los cuales pueden ser productores de hormonas o no productores. Finalmente, se pueden encontrar lesiones malignas, como carcinomas adrenales. Ante la presencia de un incidentaloma suprarrenal con tamaño mayor de 4 centímetros, irregularidad en los bordes, alta atenuación de la lesión (en unidades Hounsfield) y un bajo porcentaje de lavado en el estudio contrastado se favorece el diagnóstico de carcinoma, en cuyo caso el manejo es quirúrgico, una vez se haya descartado la producción hormonal (verbigracia feocromocitoma). Ahora bien, si la lesión no sugiere malignidad, la siguiente pregunta que se debe contestar es si el incidentaloma es productor o no de hormonas. En este sentido se debe evaluar la posibilidad de síndrome de Cushing (mediante una prueba de supresión con dosis bajas de dexametasona), feocromocitoma (con medición de metanefrinas en orina o en plasma) y si es hipertenso descartar hiperaldosteronismo primario midiendo la relación aldosterona/ renina. Acorde a estos resultados se definirá la conducta quirúrgica o el seguimiento clínico e imaginológico.

Comprehensive evaluation of thyrotropinomas: single-center 20-year experience.

To present a single-center 20-year experience with operated thyrotropinomas, including prevalence, clinical, biochemical and histological characteristics, and postoperative outcomes. Retrospective series of histopathologically-proven thyrotropinomas (1993-2013), divided in two groups: A (active, central hyperthyroidism) and B (silent, no hyperthyroidism). Of 1628 operated pituitary adenomas, 20 were β-TSH-positive (1.2%). In increments of 5 years, proportion of thyrotropinomas was 1, 1, 0.04 and 1.77% respectively. Median follow-up was 10.4 months (1.2-150). Group A: 6 patients (5 men), age 41 ± 12 years presented with hyperthyroidism (3), pituitary incidentaloma (2) and acromegaly (1). Tumor diameter was 2.1 ± 1.2 cm, FT4 2.68 ± 2.73 ng/dL; TSH 6.50 ± 3.68 µIU/mL. Glycoprotein alpha subunit (GSU) was uniformly elevated. Two patients had biochemical evidence of acromegaly. Tumors were plurihormonal (5 GH-positive); none atypical. Postoperative euthyroidism was achieved in 4 of 6 patients (66%). Group B: 14 patients (7 men), age 47 ± 14 years presented with acromegaly (6), mass effect (4), incidentaloma (3) and galactorrhea (1). Tumor diameter was 2.0 ± 1.0 cm. Free T4 (1.00 ± 0.24 ng/dL) and TSH (2.02 ± 1.65 mIU/L) were lower than in group A (p < 0.01). GSU was elevated in all tested cases. Nine patients had biochemical evidence of acromegaly. Tumors were plurihormonal (12 GH-positive); none atypical. Gross total resection was achieved in 12 of 14 (86%), and 1 (7%) recurred. In our series, more thyrotropinomas were operated in recent years. These tumors were often plurihormonal with heterogenous clinical presentation and frequent GH co-secretion. Surgical outcomes were good but long-term follow up is necessary.

Pituitary incidentaloma: features and outcomes: recent experience at a tertiary centre

Pituitary incidentaloma: features and outcomes: recent experience at a tertiary centre

Pituitary Mri Findings in Patients With Pituitary and Ectopic Acth-Dependent Cushing Syndrome: Does A 6-Mm Pituitary Tumor Size Cut-Off Value Exclude Ectopic Acth Syndrome?

Expert opinion and a consensus statement on Cushing syndrome (CS) indicate that in a patient with a clinical presentation and biochemical studies consistent with a pituitary etiology, the presence of a pituitary tumor ≥6 mm is highly suggestive of Cushing disease (CD). The purpose of the present study was to determine the optimal pituitary tumor size that can differentiate between patients with CD and ectopic adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) secretion (EAS) and obviate the need for inferior petrosal sinus sampling (IPSS). We performed a retrospective study of 130 patients seen between 2000 and 2012 including 104 patients with CD and 26 patients with EAS. A pituitary lesion was reported in 6/26 (23%) patients with EAS and 71/104 (68.3%) patients with CD, with median (range) sizes of 5 mm (3-14) and 8 mm (2-31), respectively. All tumors in the EAS group measured ≤6 mm except for 1 that measured 14 mm. The presence of a pituitary tumor >6 mm in size had 40% sensitivity and 96% specificity for the diagnosis of CD. ACTH levels >209 pg/mL and serum potassium <2.7 mmol/L were found in patients with EAS. All patients with EAS had a 24-hour urine free cortisol (UFC) >3.4 times the upper limit of normal (×ULN) Conclusion: Pituitary incidentalomas as large as 14 mm in size can be seen in patients with EAS. However, the 6-mm tumor size cut-off value provided 96% specificity and may be a reasonable threshold to proceed with surgery without the need for IPSS when the biochemical data support a pituitary etiology.

Subclinical Cushing syndrome of adrenal genesis in conjunction with relapse of pituitary incidentalomas

Subclinical Cushing syndrome of adrenal genesis in conjunction with relapse of pituitary incidentalomas