Free
E-newsletter
Subscribe to Housecall
Our weekly general interest
e-newsletter keeps you up to date
on a wide variety of health topics.
Mayo Clinic Housecall
Stay up to date on the latest health information.
What you get
- Free weekly e-newsletter
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- Recipes, tools and other helpful information
- We do not share your e-mail address
Causes
By Mayo Clinic staff
Hypopituitarism may be the result of inherited disorders, but more often it's acquired. Hypopituitarism frequently is triggered by a tumor of the pituitary gland. As a pituitary tumor increases in size, it can compress and damage pituitary tissue, interfering with hormone production. A tumor can also compress the optic nerves, causing visual disturbances.
The cause of hypopituitarism can also be other diseases and events that damage the pituitary, such as:
- Head injuries
- Brain or pituitary tumors
- Brain surgery
- Radiation treatment
- Autoimmune inflammation (hypophysitis)
- Stroke
- Infections of the brain, such as meningitis
- Tuberculosis
- Infiltrative diseases, such as sarcoidosis, which is an inflammatory disease occurring in various organs; histiocytosis X, in which abnormal cells cause scarring in numerous parts of the body, such as the lungs and bones; and hemochromatosis, which causes excess iron deposition in the liver and other tissues
- Severe loss of blood during childbirth, which may cause damage to the front part of the pituitary gland (Sheehan syndrome or postpartum pituitary necrosis)
- Genetic mutations resulting in impaired pituitary hormone production
Diseases of the hypothalamus, a portion of the brain situated just above the pituitary, also can cause hypopituitarism. The hypothalamus produces hormones of its own that directly affect the activity of the pituitary.
In some cases, the cause of hypopituitarism is unknown.
- Generalized hypopituitarism. The Merck Manuals: The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals. http://www.merck.com/mmpe/print/sec12/ch151/ch151c.html. Accessed Feb. 22, 2013.
- Longo DL, et al. Harrison's Online. 18th ed. New York, N.Y.: The McGraw-Hill Companies; 2012. http://www.accessmedicine.com/resourceTOC.aspx?resourceID=4. Accessed Feb. 22, 2013.
- Papadakis MA, et al. Current Medical Diagnosis & Treatment 2013. 52nd ed. New York, N.Y.: The McGraw-Hill Companies; 2013. http://www.accessmedicine.com/resourceTOC.aspx?resourceID=1. Accessed Feb. 22, 2013.
- Appelman-Dijkstra NM, et al. Pituitary dysfunction in adult patients after cranial radiotherapy: Systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. 2011;96:2330.
- Toogood AA, et al. Hypopituitarism: Clinical features, diagnosis and management. Endocrinology and Metabolism Clinics of North America. 2008;37:235.
Find Mayo Clinic on