Samih Hassan
Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, UK
Scientific Tracks Abstracts: J Neurol Neurophysiol
Objectives: To examine the relationship between the speed of peripheral cortisol level drop following pituitary
surgery for Cushing disease (CD) and long-term CD recurrence.
Design: A retrospective study of patients presenting to our centre between 2007 and 2018.
Methods: We reviewed our centreâ??s database to identify all patients with confirmed pituitary-driven CD. The target
cortisol level for remission of CD was defined as, less than 50 nmol/l.
Results: We identified 148 patients (43 males and 105 females, age range: 17â??84 years). Twenty patients were
excluded due to being lost to follow-up. Median follow-up from diagnosis was 59 months (range: 4â??126 months).
Patients who achieved the target cortisol of <50 nmol/l within 48 h had a recurrence rate of 2.1% during the followup
period. Patients who achieved that level within 48 to 96 h had a recurrence rate of 10%, and those who achieved
this level after 96 h had recurrence rate of 33.3%. Interestingly, we identified 13 patients who attained long term CD
remission during follow-up with a persistent cortisol level of >50 nmol/l post operatively (range: 59â??270 nmol/l).
Conclusions: The speed of reduction in peripheral cortisol levels correlates with long term CD control. This can
be used as a predicting factor to guide the treating physicians in counselling patients with CD. In addition, some
individuals with cortisol levels above 50 nmol/l are in long term remission, suggesting a need to reconsider this
threshold value.
Samih Hassan has completed his Neurosurgical training in London between St. Georges Hospital and the National Hospital of Neurology and Neurosurgery; Queen Square. He then did a fellowship in pituitary surgery and neuroendoscopy at Queen Square Hospital. He is currently a Consultant Neurosurgeon at Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow.
E-mail: samih.a.n.hassan@gmail.com
