Cushing's disease: pituitary imaging.
Fourteen patients with adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH)-dependent hypercortisolism underwent pituitary scanning with computed axial tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Computed tomography revealed pituitary macroadenomas in two patients, pituitary hyperplasia in one and a suspicion of pituitary microadenoma in one. Thirteen patients underwent MRI. One with a macroadenoma diagnosed on CT did not undergo MRI. The MRI revealed a pituitary macroadenoma in one, microadenoma in three and hyperplasia in two cases. Magnetic resonance imaging following gadolinium diethylene triamine penta acetic acid (gd-DTPA) enhancement revealed four more pituitary microadenomas. All patients who had pituitary adenomas (micro and macro) and hyperplasia underwent trans-sphenoidal pituitary surgery. One of the two patients, who had an enlarged pituitary on imaging but no demonstrable adenoma, was found to have a microadenoma at surgery. Patients with ACTH-dependent hypercortisolism should undergo MRI of the pituitary gland to identify/localize corticotroph pituitary adenomas. The study should include gd-DTPA enhancement in cases where the scan is normal.
Tripathi
S
S
Department of Endocrinology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi.
Ammini
A C
AC
Bhatia
R
R
Gupta
R
R
Berry
M
M
Sarkar
C
C
Mahajan
H
H
D000236:Adenoma / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003480:Cushing Syndrome / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D010902:Pituitary Gland / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D010911:Pituitary Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed