Long-term neurological, visual, and endocrine outcomes following transnasal resection of craniopharyngioma

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Publication Type Journal Article
School or College School of Medicine
Department Neurosurgery
Creator Couldwell, William T.
Other Author Chakabarti, Indro; Amar, Arun P.; Weiss, Martin H.
Title Long-term neurological, visual, and endocrine outcomes following transnasal resection of craniopharyngioma
Date 2005-04
Description Object. The authors report on a cohort of patients with craniopharyngioma treated principally through transnasal (TN) resection and followed up for a minimum of 5 years. More specifically, they evaluate the role of the TN approach in the management of craniopharyngioma. Methods. Between 1984 and 1994, 68 patients underwent TN resection of craniopharyngiomas at the University of Southern California. The tumor was at least partially cystic in 88% of cases. Four tumors were purely intrasellar, 53 had intra- and suprasellar components, and 11 were exclusively suprasellar. During the same period, 18 patients underwent transcranial (TC) resection of purely suprasellar craniopharyngiomas. Long-term neurological, visual, and endocrine outcomes were reviewed for all patients. In 61 (90%) of 68 patients in the TN group, total resection was achieved, according to 3-month postoperative magnetic resonance images, although four patients suffered a recurrence. Three (43%) of the seven tumors that had been partially resected were enlarged on serial imaging. Fifty-four (87%) of 62 patients with preoperative visual loss experienced improvement in one or both eyes, but two patients (3%) with exclusively suprasellar tumors experienced postoperative visual worsening in one or both eyes. New instances of postoperative endocrinopathy (that is, not present preoperatively) occurred as follows: hypogonadism (eight of 22 cases), growth hormone (GH) deficiency (four of 18 cases), hypothyroidism (11 of 49 cases), hypocortisolemia (nine of 52 cases), and diabetes insipidus (DI; four of 61 cases). One case each of hypocortisolemia and hypothyroidism resolved after surgery. Hyperphagia occurred in 27 (40%) of 68 patients. One patient had short-term memory loss. Postoperative complications included one case of cerebrospinal fluid leak. Among the 18 patients in the TC group, 11 had complete resections. In one case (9%) the tumors recurred. Three (43%) of the seven subtotally resected tumors grew during the follow-up interval. Vision improved in 11 (61%) of 18 cases and worsened in three (17%) as a result of surgery. New instances of postoperative endocrinopathy occurred as follows: hypogonadism (one of six cases), GH deficiency (four of seven cases), hypothyroidism (11 of 14 cases), hypocortisolemia (eight of 15 cases), and DI (nine of 16 cases). No instance of preoperative endocrinopathy was corrected through TC surgery. Four patients (22%) exhibited short-term memory loss and 11 (61%) had hyperphagia after surgery. When compared with those in the TC group, patients in the TN group had shorter hospital stays. Conclusions. Use of the TN approach can render good outcomes in properly selected patients with craniopharyngioma, particularly when the tumor is cystic. Even in mostly suprasellar cases, an extended TN approach can afford complete resection. Note that endocrine function often worsens after surgery and that postoperative obesity can be a significant problem.
Type Text
Publisher American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS)
Journal Title Journal of Neurosurgery
Volume 102
Issue 4
First Page 650
Last Page 657
DOI 10.3171/jns.2005.102.4.0650
citatation_issn 0022-3085
Language eng
Bibliographic Citation Chakabarti, I., Amar, A. P., Couldwell, W. T., & Weiss, M. H. (2005). Long-term neurological, visual, and endocrine outcomes following transnasal resection of craniopharyngioma. Journal of Neurosurgery, 102, 650-7.
Rights Management (c) American Association of Neurological Surgeons
Format Medium application/pdf
Format Extent 134,450 bytes
Identifier ir-main,12619
ARK ark:/87278/s6jq1jq4
Setname ir_uspace
ID 707266
Reference URL https://collections.lib.utah.edu/ark:/87278/s6jq1jq4
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