Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2013:2013:205208.
doi: 10.1155/2013/205208. Epub 2013 Mar 10.

Exophthalmos: A Forgotten Clinical Sign of Cushing's Syndrome

Affiliations

Exophthalmos: A Forgotten Clinical Sign of Cushing's Syndrome

Aldo Schenone Giugni et al. Case Rep Endocrinol. 2013.

Abstract

Exophthalmos is typically associated with Graves' ophthalmopathy. Although originally described by Harvey Cushing, exophthalmos is an underappreciated sign of Cushing's syndrome. We present a case of a 38-year-old female who presented with severe bilateral proptosis and was subsequently diagnosed with Cushings disease. We discuss the possible mechanisms causing exophthalmos in patients with either endogenous or exogenous hypercortisolemia.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Bilateral exophthalmos as seen on MRI.
Figure 2
Figure 2
MRI of pituitary (coronal view) (arrows showing the macroadenoma and stalk deviation).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Histology: (a) H&E stain showing basophilic cells at magnification ×200. (b) Positive ACTH staining.

References

    1. Cushing H. The basophil adenomas of the pituitary body and their clinical manifestation. Bulletin Johns Hopkins Hospital. 1932;50:173–195.
    1. Howlett TA, Rees LH, Besser GM. Cushing’s syndrome. Clinics in Endocrinology and Metabolism. 1985;14(4):911–945. - PubMed
    1. Kelly W. Exophthalmos in cushing's syndrome. Clinical Endocrinology. 1996;45(2):167–170. - PubMed
    1. Nezu M, Miwa I, Minai K, Kagami T. A case of Cushing’s syndrome associated with severe exophthalmos. Nihon Naika Gakkai. 1987;76(8):1290–1293. - PubMed
    1. Boschi A, Detry M, Duprez T, et al. Malignant bilateral exophthalmos and secondary glaucoma in iatrogenic Cushing’s syndrome. Ophthalmic Surgery and Lasers. 1997;28(4):318–320. - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources