Cases: Decompensated Heart Failure Secondary to Hypopituitarism in an Elderly Patient

Intern Med. 2024 Apr 23. doi: 10.2169/internalmedicine.3491-24. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTHypopituitarism is difficult to diagnose because of its non-specific symptoms, especially in the presence of comorbidities. A 77-year-old woman with worsening anorexia and exertional dyspnea was initially diagnosed with decompensated dry cold-type heart failure. Hormonal laboratory tests indicated secondary hypothyroidism as a part of the evaluation of heart failure. Furthermore, pituitary magnetic resonance imaging revealed thickening of the pituitary stalk and a loss of signal intensity in the posterior pituitary, thus suggesting lymphocytic hypophysitis. Oral hydrocortisone and levothyroxine improved the persistent anorexia. In this case, hypopituitarism occasionally presented as dry cold-type heart failure, thus making a prompt diagnosis challenging in the setting of concurrent heart failure.PMID:38658338 | DOI:10.2169/internalmedicine.3491-24
Source: Internal Medicine - Category: Internal Medicine Authors: Source Type: research