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Transsphenoidal Surgery for Nonfunctioning Pituitary Adenomas

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Transsphenoidal Surgery

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Abstract

Nonfunctioning pituitary adenomas represent nearly a third of all pituitary tumors. These tumors do not secrete clinically significant hormones, but often cause hypopituitarism from compression of the normal gland along with visual compromise due to proximity to the optic chiasm. Medical options for treatment of nonfunctioning pituitary adenomas are limited, and surgical resection via a transsphenoidal approach, supplemented in some patients by stereotactic radiosurgery for residual or recurrent disease, remains the cornerstone of treatment. There is often pituitary dysfunction postoperatively, particularly diabetes insipidus (DI), which tends to resolve over time. Due to the modest recurrence rate of nonfunctioning pituitary adenomas, these patients should be followed up over time with yearly MRI scans along with visual and endocrine evaluations as needed.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurosurgery, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA

    Sarah T. Menacho MD

  2. University of Texas, Anderson Cancer Center, Neurosurgery, Houston, TX, USA

    Ian E. McCutcheon MD

Authors
  1. Sarah T. Menacho MD
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  2. Ian E. McCutcheon MD
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Correspondence to Ian E. McCutcheon MD .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurosurgery, Harvard Medical School Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA, USA

    Edward R. Laws, Jr

  2. Department of Neurosurgery, Indianapolis Methodist Hospital, Indianapolis, IN, USA

    Aaron A. Cohen-Gadol

  3. Department of Neurosurgery, Weill Cornell Medical College New York Presbyterian Hospital, New York, NY, USA

    Theodore H. Schwartz

  4. Department of Neurological Surgery, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA

    Jason P. Sheehan

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Menacho, S.T., McCutcheon, I.E. (2017). Transsphenoidal Surgery for Nonfunctioning Pituitary Adenomas. In: Laws, Jr, E.R., Cohen-Gadol, A.A., Schwartz, T.H., Sheehan, J.P. (eds) Transsphenoidal Surgery. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-56691-7_27

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-56691-7_27

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-56689-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-56691-7

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