Neurosurgery for a pituitary tumor patient

Name: Mrs. Hu
Age: 52
Gender: Female
Country: China
Diagnosis: pituitary tumor

Background

Mrs Hu is a 52 year old female patient from China. She was admitted into Beijing Tiantan Puhua International Hospital in April 2007, due to “chronic headaches for 5-6 years, double vision for 4 years and a deteriorated condition for the past 1 year”.

Medical condition pre surgery

Mrs Hu initially suffered from a severe, chronic headache. She then experienced double vision and she did not accept system therapy. Her condition deteriorated in the one year before she arrived at our hospital, with a decreasing level of both Estrogen and Cortisol. A cerebral MRI on admission revealed: an occupying lesion in the saddle area, with a short T1 and long T2 signal. The lesion had grown from the intrasellar area to the suprasellar area. The chiasm opticum had shifted upwards and was compressed.

On examination, a defect of the bilateral temporal visual fields was noted.

Surgical approach

Single endonasal transsphenoidal approach

The surgery took 40 minutes.

Medical condition post-surgery

Her post-operative condition was stable. Her headache decreased significantly after the surgery and disappeared completely in the next couple of days. Her double vision also disappeared. Although the bilateral temporal visual field defect still existed, the patient expressed a satisfaction at her "new, higher quality of life".

Follow up

A month after the patient had surgery, she returned to the hospital for follow up. A repeat MRI revealed that the tumor had disappeared completely. She again expressed deep gratitude that "my life has returned to normal again".

Six months after the operation her endocrine tests of Estrogen and Cortisol were all normal.