{
    "abstract": "Empty sella is a radiological finding of a flattened pituitary in a sellar space filled with cerebrospinal fluid. It may be primary or secondary consequent to various processes causing injury and shrinkage of the pituitary gland (postpartum hemorrhage, pituitary surgery, irradiation, apoplexy, infection, head trauma, hypophysitis, etc.). The mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of the so called \u201cprimary empty sella\u201d may range from continuously or intermittently increased intracranial pressure due to idiopathic benign intracranial hypertension, obesity, arterial hypertension, or multiple pregnancies in female patients with accompanying insufficiency of the sellar diaphragm and changes in pituitary gland volume (hyperplasia during pregnancy, lactation, menopause etc.). Primary empty sella can be an incidental radiological finding in an asymptomatic patient with preserved pituitary function. In symptomatic patients with the so called \u201cempty sella syndrome\u201d (headache, visual disturbances, and hormonal dysfunction), the radiological finding of an empty sella is important in the differential diagnosis of other sellar lesions. Hypopituitarism, partial or complete, and hyperprolactinemia are not uncommon in these patients. The treatment of hypopituitarism and hyperprolactinemia is advocated in all patients with confirmatory results. In patients with the secondary empty sella, hypopituitarism is more common and more readily recognized due to damage caused by surgery, radiation therapy, or various pathological causes. Rarely, an empty sella can be associated with hormonal hypersecretion from an \u201cinvisible\u201d micro adenoma producing prolactin, growth hormone (acromegaly), or ACTH (Cushing\u2019s disease). A wide range of radiological findings in patients with secondary and primary empty sella coupled with clinical data (important hints from the history and data on endocrine function) are presented for further illustration of this topic. For complete coverage of all related areas of Endocrinology, please visit our on-line FREE web-text, WWW.ENDOTEXT.ORG.",
    "authors": [
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Kenneth R",
            "initials": "KR",
            "lastname": "Feingold"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "S. Faisal",
            "initials": "SF",
            "lastname": "Ahmed"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Bradley",
            "initials": "B",
            "lastname": "Anawalt"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Marc R",
            "initials": "MR",
            "lastname": "Blackman"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Alison",
            "initials": "A",
            "lastname": "Boyce"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "George",
            "initials": "G",
            "lastname": "Chrousos"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Emiliano",
            "initials": "E",
            "lastname": "Corpas"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Wouter W",
            "initials": "WW",
            "lastname": "de Herder"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Ketan",
            "initials": "K",
            "lastname": "Dhatariya"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Kathleen",
            "initials": "K",
            "lastname": "Dungan"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Johannes",
            "initials": "J",
            "lastname": "Hofland"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Sanjay",
            "initials": "S",
            "lastname": "Kalra"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Gregory",
            "initials": "G",
            "lastname": "Kaltsas"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Nitin",
            "initials": "N",
            "lastname": "Kapoor"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Christian",
            "initials": "C",
            "lastname": "Koch"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Peter",
            "initials": "P",
            "lastname": "Kopp"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "M\u00e1rta",
            "initials": "M",
            "lastname": "Korbonits"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Christopher S",
            "initials": "CS",
            "lastname": "Kovacs"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Wendy",
            "initials": "W",
            "lastname": "Kuohung"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Blandine",
            "initials": "B",
            "lastname": "Laferr\u00e8re"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Miles",
            "initials": "M",
            "lastname": "Levy"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Elizabeth A",
            "initials": "EA",
            "lastname": "McGee"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Robert",
            "initials": "R",
            "lastname": "McLachlan"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Radhika",
            "initials": "R",
            "lastname": "Muzumdar"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Jonathan",
            "initials": "J",
            "lastname": "Purnell"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Rodolfo",
            "initials": "R",
            "lastname": "Rey"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Rakesh",
            "initials": "R",
            "lastname": "Sahay"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Amy S",
            "initials": "AS",
            "lastname": "Shah"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Frederick",
            "initials": "F",
            "lastname": "Singer"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Mark A",
            "initials": "MA",
            "lastname": "Sperling"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Constantine A",
            "initials": "CA",
            "lastname": "Stratakis"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Dace L",
            "initials": "DL",
            "lastname": "Trence"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Don P",
            "initials": "DP",
            "lastname": "Wilson"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Dragana",
            "initials": "D",
            "lastname": "Miljic"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Sandra",
            "initials": "S",
            "lastname": "Pekic"
        },
        {
            "collective": null,
            "firstname": "Vera",
            "initials": "V",
            "lastname": "Popovic"
        }
    ],
    "copyrights": "Copyright \u00a9 2000-2025, MDText.com, Inc.",
    "doi": "10.3174/ajnrA2.404\n10.3171/2020.3.FOCUS2084\n10.1016/j.ghir.2022.101521\n10.1186/s12902-020-00621-5\n10.3389/fendo.2022.925378\n10.1080/00207454.2019.1660328\n10.1007/s11102-017-0842-6\n10.1016/j.wneu.2019.02.195",
    "isbn": null,
    "language": "eng",
    "publication_date": "2000",
    "publication_type": "Review",
    "publisher": "MDText.com, Inc.",
    "publisher_location": "South Dartmouth (MA)",
    "pubmed_id": "14942993\n5300448\n15972577\n28780516\n12455560\n16304986\n36305440\n35532643\n24029390\n21680652\n22875743\n32480375\n36427362\n29510819\n34036923\n32943019\n35813618\n36642370\n31462116\n29027644\n30877013\n33730618\n27736313\n30321014",
    "sections": [
        {
            "chapter": null,
            "title": "ABSTRACT"
        },
        {
            "chapter": null,
            "title": "HISTORY"
        },
        {
            "chapter": null,
            "title": "DEFINITION, ETIOLOGY, AND PREVALENCE OF EMPTY SELLA"
        },
        {
            "chapter": null,
            "title": "RADIOLOGICAL APPEARANCE OF EMPTY SELLA"
        },
        {
            "chapter": null,
            "title": "PRIMARY EMPTY SELLA (PES) AND EMPTY SELLA SYNDROME"
        },
        {
            "chapter": null,
            "title": "TREATMENT"
        },
        {
            "chapter": null,
            "title": "CONCLUSION"
        },
        {
            "chapter": null,
            "title": "REFERENCES"
        }
    ],
    "title": "Endotext"
}