The coexistence of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH)independent Cushing syndrome (CS) and an empty sella (ES) is rare (1, 2). A 53-year-old woman presented with an ES (Picture A, B) and a 40×25-mm left adrenal tumor (Picture C). She had no Cushingoid features, hypertension or diabetes. The levels of morning plasma ACTH, cortisol, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate and urinary free cortisol were 1....

Pituitary abscesses, rare lesions, may be divided into primary and secondary types. A 26-years-old woman presented with decreasing vision, and headache. Magnetic resonance images (MRI) was suggestive of a sellar tumour. She underwent a transsphenoidal approach to the pituitary gland. After dural opening, purulent material was obtained and no tumour or other associated lesion was detected. It co...

The ponticulus posticus (PP) is a bridge of bone sometimes found on the atlas vertebra surrounding the vertebral artery and the first cervical nerve root. Sella turcica bridging (STB) is the fusion of anterior and posterior clinoid processes. The objective of this study was to find out the association between STB and PP. For the study, 752 digital lateral cephalograms were retrieved from the ar...

Epidermoid cysts (ECs) are benign congenital cysts that typically develop from misplaced stratified squamous epithelium during neural tube closure. They are most commonly encountered in the cerebellopontine angle, the fourth ventricle, and the region of the sella turcica. Recurrence of an EC or regrowth of residual components following surgery is known to occur, but the exact incidence is not d...

Televised fluoroscopy during surgery has been an important factor in the resurgence and ref inement of the transsphenoidal approach to se llar lesions. It provides continuous control of placement of instruments, and permits further rad io logic evaluation of the extent of the lesion . Intraoperative pneumoencephalography has been used to delineate sellar tumors [1], but the image obtained is of...

A Rathke's cleft cyst (RCC) is a benign pituitary cyst derived from the remnant of Rathke's pouch, and usually presents as an intrasellar lesion with varying degrees of suprasellar extension. However, to date, a description of a primary prepontine RCC with no intrasellar component has not been reported. The author describes an exceptional case of a symptomatic RCC located behind the sella turci...

A 73-year-old woman was admitted due to weight loss and generalized malaise. The basal levels of all the anterior pituitary hormones, except for prolactin, were reduced. However, they were all elevated in response to exogenous hypothalamic hormones. After starting hydrocortisone replacement, the patient had polyuria of >5,000 mL/day. T1-weighted MRI depicted a low signal of an oval mass in the ...