Objective: To perform a casuistry review of patients diagnosed with pituitary adenomas (PA) who underwent surgery performed by the same neurosurgeon after 1995.
Material and methods: A descriptive and retrospective study was performed in 98 patients with PA undergoing surgery from 1995-2008. Tumor size and data on functionality, pathology and postprocedural complications were analyzed. The study was divided into two periods: 1995-2002 (first period) and 2003-2008 (second period).
Results: A total of 110 surgical interventions (59 in the first period and 51 in the second) were performed for 49 non-hormone-producing PA and 61 hormone-producing PA. There were 85 macroadenomas and 25 microadenomas. Cure was achieved in 31 patients (36%) with macroadenomas and in 21 patients (84%) with microadenomas (P=0.05).The number of complications was significantly higher in the first period [32 patients (54 %)] than in the second period [16 patients (31.3%)] (P<0.05). Cure was achieved in 28 patients (47.4%) in the first period compared with 31 (52.1%) in the second (P=0.1). The mortality rate was 0.9%.
Conclusions: As described in previous studies, the cure rate was significantly higher for microadenomas than for macroadenomas. There was a significant reduction in the incidence of surgical complications and a trend toward an increase in the percentage of overall healing in the second period of the study. These results are probably related to the neurosurgeon's greater experience and surgical skill.
Copyright 2009 SEEN. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.