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Pituitary tumors (PT) account for 15% of intracranial tumors affect 10.7-14.4% of the population although the incidence of clinically relevant PT is 5.1 cases/100,000 inhabitants. Surgical treatment is indicated in PTs with hormone hypersecretion (except for prolactin-producing PTs) and those with local compressive or global neurological symptoms. Multidisciplinary care, is essential for patients with PTs, preferably delivered in a center of excellence and based on a well-defined care protocol. In order to facilitate and standardize the clinical procedures for this type of tumor, this document gathers the positioning of the Neuroendocrinology Knowledge Area of the Spanish Society of Endocrinology and Nutrition (SEEN) and the Spanish Society of Neurosurgery (SENEC) on the management of patients with PTs and their preoperative, surgical and postoperative follow-up., (Copyright © 2023 Sociedad Española de Neurocirugía. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)

Objective: Our aim was to characterise a cohort of patients with Cushing's disease (CD) who did not present pituitary adenoma in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), needing a catheterisation of the inferior petrosal sinus (CIPS), and to study the pathological findings of the pituitary gland in these subjects after transsphenoidal surgery in order to establish the aetiology of CD. Furthermore, we evaluated possible differences in the features of the diagnosis between hyperplasia and adenoma., Subjects and Methods: We included 16 subjects. 17 CIPS were done. Hormonal parameters were measured using standard methods. A microscopic histochemical study following standard procedures and immunohistochemical analysis was performed. The diagnostic criteria for adenoma and hyperplasia were based on the WHO classification., Results: One patient was excluded for presenting an ACTH-producing bronchial neuroendocrine tumour. The 15 subjects with CD have a positive CIPS test indicating hypophyseal ACTH production. After transsphenoidal surgery, 12 patients showed a microadenoma and three (20%) a corticotroph cell hyperplasia. We found four recurrences after the transsphenoidal surgery (26%), with a mean time for recurrence of 105 months. We found that recurrence was more frequent in subjects with hyperplasia, and in those subjects with lower right/left ACTH ratio., Conclusion: Our study, which was focused on patients with CD with no pituitary adenoma detected by MRI and a positive CRH test after CIPS, has found that 20% showed corticotroph cell hyperplasia as the cause of CD. Right/left ACTH ratio after CIPS was useful to differentiate adenoma from hyperplasia. This finding may have important prognostic and treatment implications. More studies are necessary to confirm our result., (Copyright © 2022 SEEN and SED. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)

Introduction: Pituitary and sellar region tumours account for 10-15% of intracranial benign tumours, with pituitary adenoma being the most common one. In this article, a review is presented on 9 years of experience in surgical treatment using an endoscopic approach of sellar region lesions. The main features of our surgical technique will be explained, as well as the results in clinical and hormonal terms., Material and Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted on 200 patients operated on due to sellar lesions by the same neurosurgeon (J.E.) using an endoscopic endonasal transsphenoidal approach between February 2006 and February 2015. The cases excluded were, those requiring extended approaches of the skull base, as well as craniopharyngiomas, inflammatory, metastatic, or malignant lesions., Results: Of the 200 patients treated (59.5% women, mean age of 51.7 years, range: 18-82 years old), there were: 7 Rathke cysts and 193 adenomas (26 micro-adenomas and 165 macro-adenomas). All of them sub-classified according to the degree of invasion of the cavernous sinus (Knosp 0, 1, and 2: 129 cases and Knosp 3 and 4: 71 cases). Total resection was achieved in 143 patients (71.5%), subtotal resection in 39 (19.5%), and partial resection in 18 (9%). In the group of higher occupancy of the cavernous sinus (Knosp 3 and 4) complete resection was achieved in 55.5% (40 of 71 patients). Hormonal remission was achieved in 34 patients with acromegaly (85%), 23 patients with prolactinomas (76%), and 30 patients with Cushing's disease (86%)., Conclusion: The results obtained in our series, due to the centralisation of pathology and experience, are comparable to those achieved in pituitary surgery reference centres. Early surgical exploration of cerebrospinal fluid leaks reduces the risk of post-surgical meningitis., (Copyright © 2016 Sociedad Española de Neurocirugía. Publicado por Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)

Objective: Treatment of Cushing's disease poses interesting dilemmas in clinical practice. The aim of our study was to analyze the outcomes of the different treatments, the control and recurrence rates, and the complications derived from them., Material and Methods: Data were collected from the clinical records of 22 patients over 18 years of age (86.4% women). They had been diagnosed with Cushing's disease between 2000 and 2012, and were monitored at Complejo Hospitalario Universitario-Albacete, Hospital Virgen de la Salud-Toledo Hospital General Universitario de Ciudad Real, Hospital Virgen de la Luz-Cuenca, Hospital Nuestra Señora del Prado-Talavera de la Reina, and Complejo Hospitalario la Mancha Centro-Alcázar de San Juan., Results: Surgery was the treatment of choice in all patients. Biochemical cure was achieved in 72.2% of patients. Nine patients developed in the early postoperative period diabetes insipidus, which became in 2 patients only. Surprisingly, 3 patients with normal postoperative neurohypophyseal function later developed permanent diabetes insipidus. New hormone deficiencies occurred in 7 patients. Seventeen patients received ketoconazole before surgery (5 of them after surgery also), and 70% of them achieved normal urinary free cortisol levels. Three patients also received radiotherapy, and all of them were cured after a median follow-up of 85.5 months; they developed no tumors or other complications., Conclusions: Our study reports the outcomes of management of Cushing's disease in non-reference centers for this disease, possibly giving a realistic picture of standard clinical practice for the condition in Spain., (Copyright © 2014 SEEN. Published by Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.)

Introduction: Pituitary adenomas account for approximately 15% of intracranial benign tumors. The neurosurgical results achieved since the endoscopic endonasal transsphenoidal (EET) approach was introduced in our center in 2005 are reported here., Patients and Methods: A retrospective analysis of 121 patients with sellar lesions (58% females, age 55.7 ± 16 years, range 18-82) who underwent EET surgery from February 2005 to January 2012 and were followed up for a mean time of 4.58 years (range 1.08-8.58)., Results: Six Rathke cleft cysts (3 intra-suprasellar, 1 intrasellar, 2 suprasellar); 114 pituitary adenomas (16 microadenomas, 98 macroadenomas), and 1 case of normal MRI were included. Baseline findings included hormonal changes in 59 patients (48,7%) and visual field changes in 38 patients (31%); in 7 patients (5.8%), clinical presentation was pituitary apoplexy. Complete resection was achieved in 77 patients (63.6%), subtotal resection in 29 (23.9%), and partial resection in 15 (12.3%). In patients with Grade 3 and 4 cavernous sinus invasion, resection was subtotal in 30% (12/39) and complete in 46% (18/39). Hormonal remission was achieved in 16 patients with Cushing disease (84%), 18 patients with prolactinoma (78.2%), and 18 patients with acromegaly (85,7%). There were 12 cases (9%) of cerebrospinal fluid leak, 4 cases of diabetes insipidus, and 3 cases with transient SIADH/hyponatremia. Seven patients developed panhypopituitarism. Postoperative mortality rate was 2.4%. One hundred and three patients (85.3%) were discharged from the hospital less than 48 hours after surgery., Conclusion: Our results are similar to those reported by renowned pituitary units. Results achieved using an endoscopic approach in pituitary neurosurgery are better than those of microneurosurgery for cavernous sinus invasion., (Copyright © 2013 SEEN. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.)

There is no consensus on the remission criteria for Cushing's disease or on the definition of disease recurrence after transsphenoidal surgery, and comparison of the different published series is therefore difficult. A long-term recurrence rate of Cushing's disease ranging from 2%-25% has been reported. Predictors of long-term remission reported include: 1) adenoma-related factors (aggressiveness, size, preoperative identification in MRI), 2) surgery-related factors, mainly neurosurgeon experience, 3) clinical factors, of which dependence on and duration of glucocorticoid treatment are most important, and 4) biochemical factors. Among the latter, low postoperative cortisol levels, less than 2 mcg/dL predict for disease remission. However, even when undetectable plasma cortisol levels are present, long-term recurrence may still occur and lifetime follow-up is required. We report the preliminary results of the first 20 patients with Cushing's disease operated on at our hospital using nadir cortisol levels less than 2 mcg/dl as remission criterion., (Copyright © 2012 SEEN. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.)