The level of accordance between preoperative and postoperative diagnosis in patients undergoing adrenalectomy – a study of 230 consecutive cases

Abstract

Introduction Patients are qualified for an adrenalectomy due to endocrine or oncologic reasons. Final histopathological diagnoses include a wide spectrum of more than a dozen entities. The aim of this study was to compare preoperative and postoperative diagnoses of patients undergoing adrenalectomy to determine the level of diagnostic accuracy, as well as sex and age of patients. Material and methods A group of 214 patients (230 specimens in total) operated on in a single center was studied and their demographic and pathological data were investigated. Results The majority of diagnoses were characterized by both high positive predictive value and sensitivity, excluding pheochromocytoma (60.0% and 67.7%, respectively) and adrenal cyst (100% and 37.5%, respectively). Patients operated on due to Cushing’s syndrome were statistically significantly more often females (p = 0.009), while those with metastases (diagnosed both pre- and postoperatively) were more often males (both p = 0.001). Patients qualified due to non-functioning tumors were older than those with Cushing’s or Conn’s syndrome (p = 0.044 and p = 0.002, respectively). Conclusions The lowest diagnostic accuracy is observed in cases of pheochromocytoma and adrenal cyst. Meticulous preparation of the patient for hormonal tests, including discontinuation of certain medications, is essential for obtaining accurate results. The diagnosis of Cushing’s syndrome is more prevalent in females, while metastasis syndrome is more prevalent in males. Adrenocortical carcinoma may initially be diagnosed as a non-functioning tumor (1.6% of such cases) or a recurrence of a previously resected tumor, which should always raise a suspicion of a malignant neoplasm.

Keywords

• adrenal gland neoplasms
• adrenocortical tumors
• pheochromocytoma
• adrenalectomy
• histopathology