The Pituitary

Shlomo Melmed

• Publisher: Academic Press
• Year: 2010
• ISBN:
  9780123809278
• Edition: 3
• Topic: Medicine
• Subtopic: Endocrinology & Metabolism

The pituitary, albeit a small gland, is known as the "master gland" of the endocrine system and contributes to a wide spectrum of disorders, diseases, and syndromes. Since the publication of the second edition of The Pituitary, in 2002, there have been major advances in the molecular biology research of pituitary hormone production and action and there is now a better understanding of the pathogenesis of pituitary tumors and clinical syndromes resulting in perturbation of pituitary function. There have also been major advances in the clinical management of pituitary disorders. Medical researchers and practitioners now better understand the morbidity and mortality associated with pituitary hormone hyposecretion and hypersecretion. Newly developed drugs, and improved methods of delivering established drugs, are allowing better medical management of acromegaly and prolactinoma. These developments have improved the worldwide consensus around the definition of a "cure" for pituitary disease, especially hormone hypersecretion, and hence will improve the success or lack of success of various forms of therapy. It is therefore time for a new edition of The Pituitary.

The third edition will continue to be divided into sections that summarize normal hypothalamic-pituitary development and function, hypothalamic-pituitary failure, and pituitary tumors; additional sections will describe pituitary disease in systemic disorders and diagnostic procedures, including imaging, assessment of the eyes, and biochemical testing.

The first chapter will be completely new – placing a much greater emphasis on physiology and pathogenesis. Two new chapters will be added on the Radiation and Non-surgical Management of the Pituitary and Other Pituitary Lesions. Other chapters will be completely updated and many new author teams will be invited. The second edition published in 2002 and there have been incredible changes in both the research and clinical aspects of the pituitary over the past 8 years – from new advances in growth hormones to pituitary tumor therapy.

• Presents a comprehensive, translational source of information about the pituitary in one reference work
• Pituitary experts (from all areas of research and practice) take readers from the bench research (cellular and molecular mechanism), through genomic and proteomic analysis, all the way to clinical analysis (histopathology and imaging) and new therapeutic approaches
• Clear presentation by endocrine researchers of the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying pituitary hormones and growth factors as well as new techniques used in detecting lesions (within the organ) and other systemic disorders
• Clear presentation by endocrinologists and neuroendocrine surgeons of how imaging, assessment of the eyes, and biochemical testing can lead to new therapeutic approaches

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Table of Contents
• Contributors
• Preface
• Chapter 1: Pituitary Development
• Chapter 2: Hypothalamic Regulation of Anterior Pituitary Function
• Chapter 3: Adrenocorticotropin
• Chapter 4: Growth Hormone
• Chapter 5: Prolactin
• Chapter 6: Thyroid-stimulating Hormone
• Chapter 7: Gonadotropin Hormones
• Chapter 8: The Posterior Pituitary
• Chapter 9: The Hypothalamus
• Chapter 10: Anterior Pituitary Failure
• Chapter 11: Pituitary Function in Systemic Disorders
• Chapter 12: The Pituitary Gland in Pregnancy and the Puerperium
• Chapter 13: Drugs and Pituitary Function
• Chapter 14: Acromegaly
• Chapter 15: Prolactinoma
• Chapter 16: Cushing's disease
• Chapter 17: Thyrotropin-Secreting Pituitary Tumors
• Chapter 18: Gonadotroph Adenomas
• Chapter 19: Nonpituitary Tumors of the Sellar Region
• Chapter 20: Pituitary Imaging
• Chapter 21: Pituitary Surgery
• Index