Pituitary tumors often cause amenorrhea

Pituitary tumors account for about 10% of all intracranial tumors. Prolactinoma is a common pituitary tumor, followed by craniopharyngioma, growth hormone-secreting cell tumor, adrenocorticotropic hormone-secreting cell tumor and thyrotropin-secreting cell tumor. Tumors of different natures may present with different symptoms, but most of them present with amenorrhea.

Clinically, the typical clinical symptoms are amenorrhea and galactorrhea.

Amenorrhea is the earliest symptom of pituitary prolactinoma, and the duration of amenorrhea is related to the degree of elevation of serum PRL (prolactin). Galactorrhea is also an important symptom of this disease, with varying amounts, and is not positively correlated with serum PRL (prolactin) values. It is easy to detect when it is excessive, but only when the breasts are squeezed can it be found. It is usually bilateral, but can also be unilateral.

In addition, when the PRL value (i.e. prolactin value) is high, it can also cause anovulatory infertility, or cessation of follicular development, decreased estrogen secretion, genital atrophy, vaginal dryness, and difficulty in sexual intercourse. It may also cause paroxysmal facial flushing, irritability, and loss of libido.

If the tumor continues to expand, it will compress the surrounding brain tissue, causing headaches; it will compress the optic chiasm upwards, causing visual or visual field impairment, such as bitemporal hemianopsia, visual field loss, visual impairment, and permanent blindness; it will compress the posterior pituitary gland, causing diabetes insipidus; it will compress the hypothalamus, causing obesity, drowsiness, dreaminess, and temperature regulation disorders. When the tumor undergoes acute hemorrhage and necrosis, there may be severe headaches, nausea, vomiting, sudden blindness, and even coma.

From this we can see that amenorrhea caused by pituitary tumors is only the earliest symptom in the development of the tumor. If the patient is not examined and taken seriously in time, the consequences will be very serious.