title: Pituitary surgery: legacies from the past.
abstract: Pituitary surgery is a recent development in neurosurgery and most of the surgical techniques concerned have been described within the last century. We provide a historical perspective by reviewing the major steps in the development of this neurosurgical subspecialty through the ages. We concentrate on the most important figures whose advances in the study of the physiology and anatomy of the pituitary are most significant. This journey into the past will demonstrate that our current knowledge is the summation of a long road of investigation.
authors.affiliation: Inserm, CIC201, EPICIME, Service de Pharmacologie Clinique, Groupement Hospitalier Est, Hospices Civils de Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, 69000 Lyon, France.
authors.forename: Julie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dubourg
authors.forename: Emmanuel
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Jouanneau
authors.forename: Mahmoud
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Messerer
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003399:Craniotomy / Q000266:history*; D049669:History, 16th Century; D049670:History, 17th Century; D049671:History, 18th Century; D049672:History, 19th Century; D049673:History, 20th Century; D049674:History, 21st Century; D049690:History, Ancient; D006801:Humans; D007016:Hypophysectomy / Q000266:history*; D044583:Neuroendoscopy / Q000266:history*; D038361:Neuronavigation / Q000266:history; D009493:Neurosurgery / Q000266:history*; D010911:Pituitary Neoplasms / Q000266:history* / Q000601:surgery