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Query: UMLS:C0018681 (headache)
 56,091 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Pituitary abscess is a rare entity and the correct diagnosis is still difficult before surgery. More than 210 cases have been reported in the medical literature, mostly in the form of isolated case reports. We report two cases of pituitary abscess treated endoscopically and we review the literature. A 30-year-old woman and a 35-year-old man were admitted with a history of pituitary dysfunction. Patient 1 presented with polyuria, polydipsia, amenorrhea, headache, and visual impairment. Magnetic resonance imaging showed a cystic intra- and supra-sellar lesion with ring enhancement after contrast injection. Patient 2 presented with frontal headache, proptosis, painful ophthalmoplegia, visual impairment, and fever. Eight years before the patient had undergone a transphenoidal surgery for Prolactinoma. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed a sellar lesion extending into the cavernous sinus and carotid artery bilaterally. Both patients underwent endoscopic transnasal-transsphenoidal exploration. Intraoperative diagnosis of pituitary abscess was made. The postoperative courses were uneventful. Antibiotic therapy was performed in both cases. Only three cases of endoscopic treatment of pituitary abscess have been reported in the literature. We recommend early management by endoscopic transphenoidal surgery for pituitary abscess: this technique is safe, with minimal blood loss, short operating time, low morbidity, and brief hospital stay.
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PMID:Endoscopic treatment of pituitary abscess: two case reports and literature review. 1789 32

Pituitary tumors come to clinical attention due to endocrine dysfunction, distortion of local structures surrounding the pituitary fossa, or as an incidental finding during neuroimaging for headache. Explanations for pituitary tumor-associated headache include stretching of the dura mater and invasion of pain-producing structures within the cavernous sinus. However, small functional pituitary lesions may present with severe headache without cavernous sinus invasion or suprasellar extension. Prolactinomas and growth hormone-secreting tumors have a high prevalence of rare headache phenotypes with or without autonomic features, suggesting that biochemical abnormalities within the hypothalamo-pituitary axis may play a role in headache. Somatostatin analogues may be highly effective at aborting headache associated with functionally active pituitary lesions, particularly in the case of acromegaly. A proposed mechanism for this is inhibition of nociceptive peptides. This article summarizes the clinical features, pathophysiology, and potential treatment approaches to pituitary tumor-associated headache.
Curr Pain Headache Rep 2008 Jan
PMID:Chronic headache and pituitary tumors. 1841 28

We report clinical presentation, response to medical treatment, and long-term follow-up of 39 children and adolescents with prolactinoma (F:M; 30:9) (30 macro and 9 microadenoma) diagnosed at the age of 9-20 years. Mean duration of follow up was 56 months. All patients were treated with bromocriptine (BC) at doses ranging from 2.5 to 20 mg/day or by cabergoline at doses ranging from 0.5 to 2 mg/week orally. Two patients received external conventional radiotherapy after surgery. In patients with macroprolactinoma (F:M; 21:9), headache and/or visual defects were the first symptoms. All females had primary or secondary amenorrhea. Growth arrest was not observed in any patient and pubertal development was appropriate for their age. Spontaneous or provocative galactorrhea was observed in 23 patients (all females) and none of male patient had gynecomastia. Mean serum prolactin (PRL) concentration at the time of diagnosis was 322.50 ng/ml in patients with microadenoma, 522.38 ng/ml in patients with macroadenoma and 2,294.86 ng/ml in patients with macroadenoma with suprasellar extension. In 25 patients, BC normalized PRL levels and caused variable, but significant, tumor shrinkage. Cabergoline normalized PRL concentrations in 14 patients. Pregnancy occurred in 6 patients while on treatment. Pregnancies were uncomplicated, and the patients delivered normal newborns at term. Impairment of other pituitary hormone secretion was documented at the time of diagnosis in only one patient. Postoperatively six patients had other pituitary hormone deficiencies. In conclusion, the medical treatment with dopaminergic compounds is effective and safe in patients with prolactinoma with onset in childhood, allowing preservation of the anterior pituitary function.
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PMID:Clinical profile and long term follow up of children and adolescents with prolactinomas. 1894 37

SUNCT is a syndrome of short-lasting unilateral neuralgiform headache attacks with conjunctival injection and tearing. We are presenting now two cases absolutely responders to steroid therapy, one of them a SUNCT-like secondary to a prolactinoma and the other primary.
J Headache Pain 2009 Feb
PMID:SUNCT syndrome responding absolutely to steroids in two cases with different etiologies. 1902 Aug

The objective of this study was to investigate the clinical features, diagnosis, treatment and outcomes of subclinical pituitary adenoma apoplexy (SPAA) in 185 consecutive patients between January 1990 and May 2007. Of the 185 patients, 133 (71.89%) underwent transsphenoidal tumor decompression and the remaining 52 patients (28.11%) underwent transcranial surgery. Preoperative and postoperative endocrinological hormone concentrations were measured in all patients. Pituitary imaging was obtained by CT scans or MRI. Follow-up outcomes were obtained from the records of outpatient visits and by telephone interviews. Visual disturbance, headache and pituitary function impairment improved significantly in all patients. Prolactinoma was the most frequent type of pituitary adenoma in our series (51.89%). SPAA usually occurred in patients with large or giant adenomas (85.95%). Postoperative follow-up ranged from 1 year to 17 years with a mean of 7.4+/-1.6 years. The tumor recurred in 23 patients, 18 of whom were treated with postoperative radiotherapy for either residual tumors (n=8) or recurrence (n=10). Long-term thyroid hormone replacement was necessary in eight patients and steroid hormone replacement in six patients. The incidence of SPAA is relatively high compared with that of acute pituitary apoplexy. The exact pathogenic mechanism of SPAA remains unknown. MRI is significantly better than CT scans for detection of SPAA. Transsphenoidal decompression is safe and effective. Surgical decompression should be performed as early as possible.
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PMID:Manifestation, management and outcome of subclinical pituitary adenoma apoplexy. 1957 75

Short-lasting unilateral neuralgiform headache with conjunctival injection and tearing (SUNCT) syndrome is a rare trigeminal autonomic cephalalgia. The cases of SUNCT with attacks that affected both sides simultaneously have only rarely been reported and some of them had underlying pathology. We have reported a case of bilateral SUNCT-like headache secondary to a prolactinoma and responsive to lamotrigine treatment.
J Headache Pain 2009 Dec
PMID:Bilateral SUNCT-like headache in a patient with prolactinoma responsive to lamotrigine. 1976 71

With the purpose of illustrating a particular circumstance of giant macroprolactinoma diagnosis, we report the case of a 54-year-old woman who was seen in the Endocrinology department with the suspected diagnosis of hyperthyroidism in presence of unilateral exophthalmos. The patient reported headaches during the last year and secondary amenorrhea since she was 38 years old. The ophthalmologic examination confirmed the unilateral left exophthalmos, which was associated with oculomotor paralysis and vision loss. The computed tomography demonstrated a great mass of the sella extending in all directions and destroying the bone. The hormonal investigation confirmed the diagnosis of prolactinoma, with a level of 8723 ng/ml, and revealed hypopituitarism. The start of bromocriptin treatment was followed by a fall in the prolactin level to less then 200 ng/ml in 1 month. This case is particular regarding the giant macroprolactinoma in a woman discovered by an unusual visual complication.
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PMID:[Macroprolactinoma revealed by an exophthalmos]. 2057 76

The objective of this study was to describe a familial screening for AIP mutations in the context of aggressive prolactinoma in childhood. A 12-year-old boy, presented headaches and bilateral hemianopsia. He had adequate height and weight for his age (50(th) percentile), Tanner stage G1 P1. His bone age was 10 years. Prolactin was 10.560 ng/mL (3-25), FSH and LH were undetectable, IGF-1, TSH, Free T4, ACTH, and cortisol were within normal ranges. MRI showed a pituitary macroadenoma, 5.3 X 4.0 X 3.5 cm with compression of the optic chiasm, bilateral cavernous sinus invasion, encasement of carotids, and extension to clivus. Surgical debulking was performed. Resistance to cabergoline was characterized and he was submitted to two surgeries and radiotherapy. Immunohistochemical evaluation included prolactin, ACTH, GH, FSH, LH,AIP, c-erb B2, Ki-67, and p53. Genomic DNA was isolated from the index case and 48 relatives, PCR and sequencing were performed.A germline A195V mutation in AIP was identified in the index case and in five asymptomatic relatives. Germline mutations in the AIP gene may be involved in the predisposition to pituitary adenoma formation, as cause or co-factor in pathogenesis of aggressive tumors in young patients.
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PMID:Aggressive prolactinoma in a child related to germline mutation in the ARYL hydrocarbon receptor interacting protein (AIP) gene. 2134 Jan 66

Prolactinomas, the most prevalent type of neuroendocrine disease, account for approximately 40% of all pituitary adenomas. The most important clinical problems associated with prolactinomas are hypogonadism, infertility and hyposexuality. In patients with macroprolactinomas, mass effects, including visual field defects, headaches and neurological disturbances, can also occur. The objectives of therapy are normalization of prolactin levels, to restore eugonadism, and reduction of tumor mass, both of which can be achieved in the majority of patients by treatment with dopamine agonists. Given their association with minimal morbidity, these drugs currently represent the mainstay of treatment for prolactinomas. Novel data indicate that these agents can be successfully withdrawn in a subset of patients after normalization of prolactin levels and tumor disappearance, which suggests the possibility that medical therapy may not be required throughout life. Nevertheless, multimodal therapy that involves surgery, radiotherapy or both may be necessary in some cases, such as patients who are resistant to the effects of dopamine agonists or for those with atypical prolactinomas. This Review reports on efficacy and safety of pharmacotherapy in patients with prolactinomas.
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PMID:Medical treatment of prolactinomas. 2142 45

Pituitary apoplexy is rare endocrine emergency which can occur due to infarction or haemorrhage of pituitary gland. This disorder most often involves a pituitary adenoma. Occasionally it may be the first manifestation of an underlying adenoma. There is conflicting data regarding which type of pituitary adenoma is prone for apoplexy. Some studies showed predominance of non-functional adenomas while some other studies showed a higher prevalence in functioning adenomas amongst which prolactinoma have the highest risk. Although pituitary apoplexy can occur without any precipitating factor in most cases, there are some well recognizable risk factors such as hypertension, medications, major surgeries, coagulopathies either primary or following medications or infection, head injury, radiation or dynamic testing of the pituitary. Patients usually present with headache, vomiting, altered sensorium, visual defect and/or endocrine dysfunction. Hemodynamic instability may be result from adrenocorticotrophic hormone deficiency. Imaging with either CT scan or MRI should be performed in suspected cases. Intravenous fluid and hydrocortisone should be administered after collection of sample for baseline hormonal evaluation. Earlier studies used to advocate urgent decompression of the lesion but more recent studies favor conservative approach for most cases with surgery reserved for those with deteriorating level of consciousness or increasing visual defect. The visual and endocrine outcomes are almost similar with either surgery or conservative management. Once the acute phase is over, patient should be re-evaluated for hormonal deficiencies.
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PMID:Pituitary apoplexy. 2202 23


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