title: Pituitary stalk lesions.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To describe the diverse causes of pituitary stalk lesions, their diagnosis, and treatment.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Pathology of the pituitary stalk is often distinct from disease processes that affect the hypothalamus and/or pituitary. Pituitary stalk lesions fall into one of three categories: congenital, inflammatory/infectious, and neoplastic lesions.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Stalk thickening may be found incidentally or when evaluating pituitary functional abnormalities. The precise cause must be looked for to enable the proper form of therapy of the underlying process. Hormone replacement is often also necessary.
authors.affiliation: Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism and Molecular Medicine, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA.
authors.forename: Demetra
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Rupp
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Molitch
mesh_terms: D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology; D018237:Germinoma / Q000473:pathology; D006646:Histiocytosis, Langerhans-Cell / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D007018:Hypopituitarism / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology; D010902:Pituitary Gland / Q000002:abnormalities* / Q000473:pathology*; D010911:Pituitary Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology; D012507:Sarcoidosis / Q000473:pathology