Radiological evaluation of pituitary lesions by CT, plain radiography and MRI

Background: The pituitary is an important endocrine gland located at the base of the brain. It is involved in nearly all processes of homeostasis, as well as growth and development. This gland commonly develops pathology, which may result in a mass effect on adjacent intracranial structures or be hormonally active. Methods and materials: Study location: Al-Mouwasat University Hospital (Endocrine + Surgery + Radiology Departments)., Study type: A retrospective cross-sectional study, Study duration: From February 2020 to December 2023, focusing on cases that underwent MRI of the pituitary gland and radiological images. Results: Number of patients who underwent lateral radiographs of the skull with a focus on the sella turcica: 250 patients: normal images (normal sella turcica) 82%, abnormal sella turcica 18%, enlargement of the sella turcica 42%, calcifications within the sella turcica 17%, destruction and erosion of the anterior clinical processes 5%, destruction and erosion of the posterior clinical processes 7%, destruction and erosion of the anterior and posterior clinical processes 22%, deformity of the sella turcica 13%, calcifications around the sella turcica 12%. We found that the tumor size of 1-1.5 cm was 40%, the tumor size of 1.5-2 cm was 42%, the tumor size of 2-3 cm was 18%, the rate of pituitary dwarfism was 18%, the small adenoma with low density appeared in 10%, and the large adenoma with high density appeared in 14%. Conclusion: Standard views of the pituitary gland can be obtained by image reconstruction and formatting to standard coronal, sagittal, and axial anatomic landmarks. Since MRI can acquire imaging data in multiple planes, patient positioning is also less critical.