Endocrine Abstracts

Craniopharyngeoma patients have reduced quality of life and increased cardiovascular mortality because of severe obesity present in about 50% of patients. In the present study we analysed postoperative body mass index (BMI) in craniopharyngeoma patients depending on the presence of the diabetes insipidus (DI).

We retrospectively analyzed 19 craniopharyngeoma patients (male:female=12:7, age 31.2 years, range 9–67) treated at our Department since 2001. The majority of patients underwent transcranial surgery (18/19), 10/19 underwent complete debulking and 9/19 underwent incomplete resection followed by radiotherapy of residual tumor. BMI was measured before and after the treatment. All patients were evaluated for the presence of DI. Median BMI before the treatment was 26.4 kg/m² (17.7–40.8) and it increased significantly after the surgery (30.6 kg/m² (23.2–46), P<0.0001). Before the treatment only one patient had DI whereas postoperatively 13/19 patients developed DI. Postoperative BMI of the patients with DI was significantly higher compared to those without DI (31.5 kg/m² (27.1–46) vs. 27.45 kg/m² (23.2–31.6), P=0.012).

Craniopharyngeoma patients that developed postoperative DI had significantly higher BMI suggesting a predictive role of postoperative DI in the development of hypothalamic obesity.