Endocrine pathology
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Endocrine pathology · Dec 2011
Case ReportsA silent follicle-stimulating hormone-producing pituitary adenoma in a teenage male.
An 18-year-old male was referred to Toranomon Hospital seeking reoperation for recurrent clinically nonfunctioning pituitary adenoma. A pituitary macroadenoma was first suspected at age 15 due to intractable headaches. Endocrine data were unremarkable except slightly elevated serum follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH). ⋯ In contrast, among 579 patients over 20 years old undergoing surgery for nonfunctioning pituitary adenomas between 2006 and 2010 at Toranomon Hospital, 304 (52.3%) had silent gonadotroph adenomas. Gonadotroph adenomas are more common with aging: for example, 37 (61.7%) of 60 patients more than 70 years old at the time of operation had gonadotroph adenomas. In conclusion, gonadotroph adenomas, especially silent gonadotroph adenomas, are extremely rare in childhood and adolescence.