A Rare Cause of Pituitary Deficiency: Pituitary Stalk Interruption Syndrome and Magnetic Resonance Imaging Findings

Abstract

Pituitary stalk interruption syndrome is a rare disease characterized by a deficiency of adenohypophyseal hormones. Clinical presentation usually occurs in childhood or in the second decade of life. The severity of hormonal deficiency is variable. It may be isolated or be accompanied by extra–pituitary anomalies. Magnetic resonance imaging findings are considered as an absent pituitary stalk, absent or smaller adenohypophysis, absent or ectopic neurohypophysis. Contrast-enhanced imaging is essential in evaluating the presence and morphology of the pituitary stalk. In the presence of clinical findings, evaluation of the hypothalamic–pituitary region using magnetic resonance imaging is necessary for diagnosis. Early diagnosed cases can maintain their normal lives with hormone replacement. In this article, we aimed to present pituitary stalk interruption syndrome and its magnetic resonance imaging findings with a case presentation

Keywords

• hypopituitarism
• magnetic resonance imaging
• pituitary stalk interruption syndrome