IMR Press / JIN / Volume 20 / Issue 2 / DOI: 10.31083/j.jin2002045
Open Access Case Report
Abnormal magnetic resonance imaging of the sellar region and its surroundings in patients with pituitary abscess
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1 Department of Neurosurgery, Fujian Armed Police Corps Hospital, 350003 Fuzhou, Fujian Province, China
2 Department of Neurosurgery, The 900th Hospital, Fuzong Clinical School of Fujian Medical University, 350025 Fuzhou, Fujian Province, China
*Correspondence: wshsen@126.com (Shousen Wang)
J. Integr. Neurosci. 2021, 20(2), 431–437; https://doi.org/10.31083/j.jin2002045
Submitted: 16 December 2020 | Revised: 3 March 2021 | Accepted: 22 March 2021 | Published: 30 June 2021
Copyright: © 2021 The Author(s). Published by IMR Press.
This is an open access article under the CC BY 4.0 license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Abstract

Pituitary abscess is a rare disease with a high preoperative misdiagnosis rate. Magnetic resonance imaging is the primary method for confirming pituitary abscesses before surgery. We reported magnetic resonance imaging findings of four cases of pituitary abscess (three males and one female) aged from 33 to 72 years old. All four cases underwent transnasal sphenoid surgery and had a good prognosis. The findings on magnetic resonance imaging were analyzed. Three cases showed ring enhancement of the capsule wall. Four cases showed thickened pituitary stalk, with the diameter of the lower end larger than that of the upper end. The position of the pituitary stalk where it was inserted into the upper edge of the pituitary was located at the middle and posterior 1/3 junction of the upper edge of the pituitary two cases were with the enhancement of the dura mater at the bottom of the temporal lobe. Two cases were with the enhancement of the dura mater of the petroclival region, and one case was with the enhancement of the cavernous sinus. There are few articles concerning abnormal magnetic resonance imaging around the sellar region of pituitary abscess. The findings of the four cases in this article suggest that the pituitary abscess has characteristic abnormal magnetic resonance imaging of the sellar region and its surroundings.

Keywords
Pituitary abscess
Brain imaging
Clinical endocrinology
Neurovascular structures
Figures
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