Study shows enhanced efficacy in acromegaly treatment

Endoscopic surgical techniques appear to be superior over traditional microscopic methods for removing small-sized somatotropinomas, the primary cause of acromegaly, according to a study.

Conducted on 83 patients with acromegaly, the trial featured 2 surgical approaches: transnasal transsphenoidal access using a microscope (Group 1) and the same procedure employing an endoscope (Group 2).

Group 2, which underwent the endoscopic technique, exhibited an 88.4% success rate in achieving total somatotropinoma removal.

While the segmentation of patients based on tumor characteristics proved challenging due to the rarity of acromegaly, the study did not detect statistically significant differences in basal GH and IGF-1 levels between the groups. This suggests that the endoscopic approach not only enhances surgical radicality but also maintains hormonal equilibrium, crucial for achieving optimal treatment outcomes.

Reference
Vassilyeva N, Mena N, Kirov K, Diatlova E. Comparative effectiveness of endoscopic and microscopic adenoma removal in acromegaly. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2023;14:1128345. doi: 10.3389/fendo.2023.1128345. PMID: 37766690; PMCID: PMC10519786.