Hyperprolactinemia, intrasellar pituitary tissue pressure, and the pituitary stalk compression syndrome.

The intrasellar pressure has been studied in a consecutive series of 24 patients undergoing transsphenoidal surgery for pituitary adenoma. The mean intrasellar pressure for the group was 23 +/- 2.5 mm Hg (+/- standard error of the mean), with a mean pulse pressure of 3.5 +/- 1 mm Hg. The waveform partly resembled the arterial configuration. The results are correlated with the radiological and endocrinological features of the tumors. A hypothesis is proposed to explain the mechanism of hyperprolactinemia associated with the pituitary stalk compression syndrome.