HYANNIS – Endoscopic surgery for pituitary tumors involves the use of small instruments, but neurosurgeon Nicholas Coppa, MD, FAANS, is quick to say it takes a big team to make the surgeries a success.
“It’s very much a collaborative effort among endocrinology, neurosurgery and otolaryngology specialties,” he said.
Dr. Coppa frequently works with endocrinologist Catalina Norman, MD, PhD, and ear, nose and throat surgeon Ross Johnston, MD.
The pituitary gland sits at the base of the brain. It makes important hormones that control several different systems in the body and help maintain normal body function.
“The overwhelming majority of patients with big tumors present with visual problems,” said Dr. Coppa. “They get tunnel vision from a tumor putting pressure on the vision nerves.
Many patients’ pituitary problems are detected incidentally while the physician is trying to diagnose a set of symptoms, most commonly headaches, he added. A variety of asymptomatic tumors are detected this way.
A subset of pituitary tumors secrete excess hormones, which create syndromes characterized by whatever hormone is being secreted in excess, Dr. Coppa added. Oftentimes these problems are diagnosed by an endocrinologist.
Before coming to Neurosurgeons of Cape Cod – now known as Cape Cod Healthcare Neurosurgery – in 2013, Dr. Coppa was professor of skull base surgery at Oregon Health and Science University’s Northwest Pituitary Center. He has performed more than 200 endoscopic surgeries for pituitary tumors, sinonasal malignancies and anterior skull base encephaloceles. The procedure is fairly new on Cape Cod, he said.
The pituitary gland is about the size of a pea, so operating on it is a tricky and delicate procedure.
The surgeon commonly works with an endoscope inserted through one nostril, and microsurgical instruments through the other nostril. This allows him to maneuver to the surgical area.
According to the Northwest Pituitary Center’s web site, “The tube is connected to a TV monitor that helps your doctor see the surgical area even more clearly than with a microscope. Your doctor can also use intraoperative neuro-navigation to perform image-guided surgery, based on a pre-operative CT scan or MRI. This helps the doctor see exactly where the tumor is and avoid damaging healthy brain tissue that is nearby.”
Nasal endoscopy for the neurosurgeon has really taken off in the last 10 years, according to Dr. Coppa. The main reason for the increase is because the technique allows better visualization of the anatomy, he said.
“We find that it allows, at least in my experience, more maneuverability of your micro-surgical instruments. That’s been very satisfying for patients. The nasal morbidity [adverse effects] is lower compared to historic ways of doing it.”
Ear, nose and throat doctors use trans-nasal surgery to treat many sinus conditions, said Dr. Coppa. But the procedure is predominantly used by neurosurgeons for pituitary tumors, other tumors of the skull base and malignancies of the sinus cavity that often invade the brain.
After endoscopic pituitary surgery, patients are typically in the hospital for several days and resume day-to-day activities within that first week.
By BILL O’NEILL, OneCape Health News
From http://www.capecod.com/newscenter/a-team-effort-to-treat-a-pea-sized-gland/
Filed under: pituitary, Treatments | Tagged: endocrinology, endoscopic, headache, Neurosurgery, OHSU, Oregon Health & Science University, otolaryngology, pituitary, skull base tumors, surgery | Leave a comment »
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