In Other Journals

Hypothalamopituitary dysfunction following traumatic brain injury (TBI) or aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhage (SAH) may be more common than previously thought, according to the authors of a recent systematic review. Researchers collected data from 19 studies including over 1000 patients and found the prevalence of hypopituitarism in TBI patients to be 27.5% in the chronic phase. Patients who suffered an aneurysmal SAH showed a prevalence of pituitary dysfunction of 47%. The authors comment that deficiencies of pituitary hormones such as growth hormone, the sex steroids, corticosteroids and thyroid hormone result in clinical consequences that may be difficult to diagnose and significantly contribute to morbidity in these patients.