Abscess formation in the pituitary fossa associated with a pituitary adenoma.

A pituitary adenoma with abscess formation is an extremely rare finding, only two eases having been found reeorded in the literature. Whalleyfl in 1952, reported the ease of a patient who presented a picture of fulminating meningitis, and who died before a diagnosis could be made. At autopsy an abseess in a pituitary adenoma was found as the cause of the acute meningitis. Asenjo 1 deseribed a ease in which the presence of an hypophysial adenoma with typieal elinieal and radiologieal findings was detected after the patient had been treated for acute sinusitis, and complained of sudden visual disturbance. Operative treatment was sueeessful. In the ease reported here, as in Whalley's 2 case, the presenting symptoms were those of acute intracranial pathology. The pituitary adenoma which was present was diagnosed only during the course of investigations which were performed in order to aseertain the cause of his acute illness.