Current therapy of pituitary Cushing's disease.
The current methods of treatment of Cushing's disease are reviewed. Therapeutic measures can be directed to all levels of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis regulating cortisol secretion. The excessive production of cortisol can be suppressed by adrenal surgery, adrenal blocking and adrenolytic agents. The modern trend, however, is to treat the cause of the disease by pituitary surgery, radiotherapy and neuropharmacological means. The most important progress has been made in the field of transsphenoidal microsurgery which has to great extent replaced the traditional bilateral adrenalectomy.
D000315:Adrenalectomy; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D003480:Cushing Syndrome / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000532:radiotherapy / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D006854:Hydrocortisone / Q000378:metabolism*; D007030:Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System / Q000503:physiopathology; D010900:Pituitary Diseases / Q000601:surgery*; D010913:Pituitary-Adrenal System / Q000503:physiopathology; D013100:Sphenoid Bone / Q000601:surgery; D013565:Sympatholytics / Q000627:therapeutic use
D013565:Sympatholytics; D006854:Hydrocortisone