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. 2017 Jun 13:13:1521-1526.
doi: 10.2147/NDT.S138134. eCollection 2017.

Pituitary abscess: report of two cases and review of the literature

Yu Liu  1 , Feng Liu  1 , Qi Liang  2 , Yexin Li  3 , Zhifei Wang  4
Affiliations

Pituitary abscess: report of two cases and review of the literature

Yu Liu et al. Neuropsychiatr Dis Treat. .

Abstract

Pituitary abscess is a rare but critical disorder caused by an infectious process where purulent material accumulates inside the sella turcica. Since symptoms, signs and radiographic characteristics of pituitary abscess are similar to several other pituitary lesions, correct diagnosis before surgery is challenging. In this article, two cases of pituitary abscess treated in our department are reported, followed by a literature review. In these two cases, both patients presented with intermittent fever. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed a suprasellar lesion with rim enhancement after contrast injection. After transsphenoidal surgery, the diagnosis of pituitary abscess was confirmed. The patients were then given antibiotic treatment and recovered fully in less than 2 months. Findings of this article support timely diagnosis and proper treatment including transsphenoidal surgery and antibiotic therapy for pituitary abscess, leading to lower mortality rates and higher probability of pituitary hormone function recovery.

Keywords: antibiotic therapy; diagnosis; pituitary abscess; transsphenoidal resection.

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Conflict of interest statement

Disclosure The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Preoperative T1-weighted coronal (A) and sagittal (B) images after intravenous gadolinium contrast administration demonstrated a suprasellar partial rim enhancing the mass. Six months after surgery T1-weighted coronal (C) and sagittal (D) images after intravenous gadolinium contrast administration revealed resolution of the pituitary abscess after surgery.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Preoperative T1-weighted coronal (A) and sagittal (B) images after intravenous gadolinium contrast administration revealed a suprasellar rim enhancing mass. Five days after surgery T1-weighted coronal (C) and sagittal (D) images after intravenous gadolinium contrast administration revealed resolution of the pituitary abscess after surgery.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Intraoperative picture of transsphenoidal excision showing a significant amount of yellowish pus (white arrow) that was encountered upon surgical incision of the dura mater that forms the capsule of the pituitary gland.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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