title: MANAGEMENT OF ENDOCRINE DISEASE: Quality of life tools for the management of pituitary disease.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  In the last few years, quality of life (QoL) has become an outcome measure in patients with pituitary diseases.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To describe the available data on QoL impairment evaluated with questionnaires in patients with pituitary diseases.
  
  
  METHODS
  Critical review of the pertinent literature and pragmatic discussion of available information.
  
  
  METHODS
  Selection of relevant literature from PubMed and WOK, especially from the last 5 years and comprehensive analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  QoL is impaired in all pituitary diseases, mostly in acromegaly and Cushing's disease (similar to other causes of Cushing's syndrome), but also in non-functioning pituitary adenomas and prolactinomas, especially in the active phase of the disease. Nevertheless, even after endocrine 'cure', scores tend to be below normative values, indicative of residual morbidity after hormonal control. The presence of hypopituitarism worsens subjective QoL perception, which can improve after optimal substitution therapy, including recombinant human growth hormone, when indicated.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  To improve the long-term outcome of pituitary patients, helping them to attain the best possible health, it appears desirable to include subjective aspects captured when evaluating QoL, so that the affected dimensions are identified and if relevant treated. Additionally, being aware that treatment outcome may not always mean complete normalisation of physical and mental issues related to QoL can be a first step to adaptation and conforming to this new status.
authors.affiliation: Hospital Sant PauIIB-Sant Pau, Research Center for Pituitary Diseases, Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Raras (CIBERER, Unidad 747), ISCIII, and Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Susan M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Webb
authors.affiliation: Hospital Sant PauIIB-Sant Pau, Research Center for Pituitary Diseases, Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Raras (CIBERER, Unidad 747), ISCIII, and Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Iris
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Crespo
authors.affiliation: Hospital Sant PauIIB-Sant Pau, Research Center for Pituitary Diseases, Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Raras (CIBERER, Unidad 747), ISCIII, and Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Alicia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Santos
authors.affiliation: Hospital Sant PauIIB-Sant Pau, Research Center for Pituitary Diseases, Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Raras (CIBERER, Unidad 747), ISCIII, and Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Eugenia
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Resmini
authors.affiliation: Hospital Sant PauIIB-Sant Pau, Research Center for Pituitary Diseases, Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Raras (CIBERER, Unidad 747), ISCIII, and Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Aulinas
authors.affiliation: Hospital Sant PauIIB-Sant Pau, Research Center for Pituitary Diseases, Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Raras (CIBERER, Unidad 747), ISCIII, and Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Elena
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Valassi
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D010900:Pituitary Diseases / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000379:methods*; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires