Pituitary adenoma apoplexy: Review of personal series

Abstract

Background: Pituitary apoplexy is a life-threatening event with unspecific clinical background and no standardized treatment. Materials and methods: The authors retrospectively analyzed seventeen patients affected by pituitary adenoma apoplexy and treated in a 10-year period. Thirteen patients underwent surgery through transsphenoidal route while four patients have been treated conservatively. Results: The endoscopic surgical procedure showed a better result in term of complete removal of the tumor while in the "conservative" group less frequent evidence of hormones' deficiency has been registered. Once a residual lesions was observed a strict radiological follow-up is mandatory. Conclusions: According to dedicated literature and pre- and post-operative evidence of personal series, the authors try to provide an algorithm that could help in the standardization of the diagnostic and therapeutic pathways in patients with pituitary adenoma apoplexy.