title: Minimally invasive endoscopic unilateral transsphenoidal surgery for pituitary adenomas.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to analyse the results of minimally invasive endoscopic unilateral transsphenoidal surgery for pituitary adenomas.
  
  
  METHODS
  A series of 83 patients presenting with a pituitary lesion was reviewed retrospectively. Surgical procedures were performed between February 2007 and December 2010. The extent of resection was evaluated on post-operative contrast-enhanced MRI. We also reviewed our complications and compared them with the literature.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Our series included 10 micro- and 73 macro-adenomas, with cavernous sinus invasion in 60.3%. Fifty-three per cent were non-secreting. Complete resection of the macro-adenomas was achieved in 22.5% of the cases. Complications were as follows: 2 deaths (2.5%), 2 sinusitis (2.5%), 5 CSF leaks (6.2%), 1 meningitis (1.2%), 16 post-operative anterior lobe insufficiency (19.8%) and 4 persistent diabetes insipidus (4.9%). Thirty-seven patients (44.6%) presented with a compression of optical pathways with an improvement of visual acuity in 94.3%.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Purely endoscopic unilateral endonasal transsphenoidal adenoma resection is minimally invasive surgery leading to a good rate of gross total tumour resection and it is associated with a low complication rate.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Erasmus Hospital, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Belgium.
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: De Witte
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Carlot
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Devuyst
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Choufani
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hassid
mesh_terms: D000236:Adenoma / Q000601:surgery*; D004724:Endoscopy / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D044583:Neuroendoscopy / Q000379:methods*; D010911:Pituitary Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery*; D012189:Retrospective Studies