A Case of Secondary Amenorrhea Associated with Pituitary Tumor.

Nam, Y S; Lee, S H; Kwak, I P; Yoon, T K; Cha, K Y

Case Report

Korean Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology 1998;41(6):1734-1737.
Published online January 1, 2001.

A Case of Secondary Amenorrhea Associated with Pituitary Tumor.

Y S Nam, S H Lee, I P Kwak, T K Yoon, K Y Cha

Abstract

Secondary amenorrhea is usually defined as the absence of menses for at least 6 months in a woman who previously had been having regular menses, or the absence of menses for 12 months in a patient with a history of oligomenorrhea. Before the differential diagnosis of these patients is considered, thyroid disease, diabetes mellitus, and normal or abnormal pregnancies should be ruled out. After a careful physical examination, the patient can be placed in one of the following categories: those with no clinical findings of galactorrhea or excess of cortisol or androgen, those with galactorrhea, or those with clinical signs of possible cortisol excess (Cushing`s syndrome) and/or androgen excess. Women with amenorrhea and no clinical evidence of cortisol excess, androgen excess, or galactorrhea have either an abnormality in the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis or endometrial obliteration (Asherman`s syndrome). We have experienced a case of secondary amenorrhea associated with pituitary tumor suspicious of growth hormone-secreting pituitary adenoma. So we report this case with a brief review of literatures.

Key Words: Secondary amenorrhea, Growth hormone-secreting pituitary adenoma