Adult GHD may improve after transsphenoidal surgery in young adults

Young patients with adult growth hormone deficiency (AGHD) caused by nonfunctioning pituitary adenoma (NFPA) with certain peak GH levels may experience improvements after initial transsphenoidal surgery (TSS), according to a study.

Preoperative pituitary provocation tests (PPTs) were performed before 276 patients underwent TSS for NFPA, and again 3 months after surgery.

Overall, 114 patients were diagnosed with preoperative AGHD, with approximately 25.4% recovering from AGHD after undergoing TSS. Of the 162 patients without preoperative AGHD, 8% had newly developed AGHD postoperatively.

Predictive factors for recovery from AGHD included:
-Younger age
-Female sex
-Initial TSS
-High peak GH level (based on preoperative PPT)

Patients ≤62.2 years of age and who had a peak GH level of ≥0.74 μg/L based on preoperative PPT were likely to recover from AGHD.

“Whether TSS for NFPA can promote recovery from AGHD is worth considering in some patients,” the authors concluded.

Reference
Kinoshita Y, Taguchi A, Tominaga A, et al. Predictive factors for recovery from adult growth hormone deficiency after transsphenoidal surgery for nonfunctioning pituitary adenoma. J Neurosurg. 2022;1-6. doi: 10.3171/2021.10.JNS211999. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 35171826.