Effect of transsphenoidal surgery and standard care on fertility related indicators of patients with prolactinomas during child-bearing period.

OBJECTIVE

To explore the surgical therapeutic effects in the endocrine and reproductive system of women with prolactinoma at child-bearing age, and to investigate the potential influencing factors for therapeutic outcome.

METHODS

This retrospective study was performed using the medical records of 99 cases of female patients with pituitary PRL adenomas at child-bearing age, who underwent transsphenoidal surgery and took standard perioperative care from January, 2013 to June, 2013 in Huashan hospital, in which micro adenoma (≤1 cm) of 68 cases, large adenomas (> 1 cm) of 31 cases, 88 cases were total resection, 9 cases were subtotal resection, and 2 cases were massive resection. Retrospective study on the preoperative serum level of PRL, menstruation, galactorrhea and reproductive function, etc. Patients were followed up in 1, 3, 6 and 12 months after operation for endocrine indicators, the situation of menstruation and pregnancy.

RESULTS

Overall, 88.9%, 9.1%, and 2% patients underwent total, subtotal, and massive resection of prolactinoma in 99 cases of patients. Before accepting transsphenoidal surgery and standard care, all 99 cases with serum PRL level higher than normal 25 ng/ml, 71.7% (71 cases, all total resection) patients had their serum PRL < 25 ng/ml on the first day after surgery, and micro adenomas remission rate of 80.9% (55 cases) was significantly higher than 51.6% of large adenomas (16 cases) (P < 0.05); the postoperative PRL of 11 cases of total or massive resection in patients were not back to normal, Chi-square test results showed that the PRL remission rate after total resection were significantly higher than that of subtotal or massive resection (P < 0.01). 67.3% (66/98) irregular menstruation patients had menstruation recovery after surgery, in addition, total resection of the tumor, micro- adenoma, preoperative PRL < 200 ng/ml and first day of postoperative PRL ≤25 ng/ml were favorable factors for menstrual improvement (P < 0.05). 83.6% (51/61) of patients with galactorrhea symptoms got alliviated after surgery, but had no association to the types of tumor (P > 0.05). 14 patients out of 17 infertility patients got pregnant after surgery.

CONCLUSION

Transsphenoidal operation combining standardized nursing measures is an effective way to treat pituitary PRL adenoma, and it has high cure rate on abnormal menstruation caused by pituitary PRL adenoma which can recover the fertility of female patients. The preoperative serum level of prolactin could be used as an indicator for postoperative improvement in the endocrine system. The serum level of prolactin on the first day after operation could accurately reflect prognosis, so be regarded as one of the assessment factors for surgical therapeutic effect.