Miss Diagnosis: Way Back When...

Friday, February 12, 2010

Way Back When...

I've had a couple people lately ask about the early changes in Alex. These are her school pictures taken one year apart; back in 4th and 5th grades. Can you believe this wasn't enough to motivate a doctor to help?

For those of you fighting to get your kids diagnosed, take pictures frequently. When we see our kids every day we don't notice the changes.

1 comment:

AnonymousFebruary 16, 2010 at 7:25 AM
All I can say is "Wow" doesn't really look like the same girl. But I think she also lost some sparkle in her eyes, so you know she isn't feeling her best.

I am going to go back and look at my daughters photos a little more closely.

Thanks,
Cheryl
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Transphenoidal Pituitary Surgery- From the UCSF web site

What happens during surgery?
The surgical removal of the pituitary adenoma is performed by a technique called a transsphenoidal operation. The word 'transsphenoidal' describes the path the surgeon follows to reach the pituitary gland. The word comes from 'trans', meaning 'to cross or pass through', and 'sphenoid', the name of the cavity (the sphenoid sinus) that is passed through to reach the pituitary gland. Newer techniques and improvements in technology now allow removal of these tumors without the need for an incision under the lip or within the nostril. The surgeon begins the approach by entering through the nostril on one side. The surgeon uses a brilliant fiber optic light to illuminate the internal anatomy, a microscope to magnify the area of surgery to 12 times the actual size, and very tiny microsurgical instruments especially designed for this particular operation. The surgeon guides the surgical instrument into the nasal cavity and an opening is made in the sphenoid bone. The sphenoid sinus is entered, and then an opening is made in the wall of the sella turcica to expose the pituitary gland. The adenoma can be readily distinguished from the normal pituitary gland tissue and is removed without removing the normal gland. After the surgeon removes all the tumor tissue, the small cavity that is left is treated with alcohol to destroy any tumor cells that may remain. This cavity is then sealed, sometimes with a piece of fat that the surgeon removes from the patient's abdomen. The surgeon then applies a biological 'glue' that helps seal the pituitary area from the nose and promotes natural healing. No nasal packs are used with this approach.