EMPTY SELLA AND HEADACHE

Empty sella is an anatomical condition caused by herniation of the sub arachnoid space into the pituitary fossa through an incompetent sellar diaphragm. Headache seems to be one of the most frequently reported s ymptoms. We studied 13 headache patients (12 females, 1 male) presenti ng with primary empty sella (PES) on CT scan. The characteristics of t he headache were analyzed and plasma levels of pituitary hormones or c ortisol assessed. We confirmed the nonspecific nature of the headache in PES even though the majority of our patients complained of daily he adache, mostly localized anteriorly. Hormone plasma levels were within normal range in all the patients assessed. However, four patients rep orted earlier endocrine disorders and more than half of the patients p resented with obesity. In our opinion. PES should be suspected in midd le-aged overweight women with daily headache even in the absence of en docrine symptomatology.