Pituitary Disorders
Basics
Learn More
See, Play and Learn
Research
Resources
For You
Summary
Your pituitary gland is a pea-sized gland at the base of your brain. The pituitary is the "master control gland" - it makes hormones that affect growth and the functions of other glands in the body.
With pituitary disorders, you often have too much or too little of one of your hormones. Injuries can cause pituitary disorders, but the most common cause is a pituitary tumor.
Diagnosis and Tests
- ACTH (Adrenocorticotropic Hormone) Test (American Association for Clinical Chemistry)
- FSH (Follicle-Stimulating Hormone) Test (American Association for Clinical Chemistry)
- Growth Hormone (American Association for Clinical Chemistry)
- IGF-1 (Insulin-Like Growth Factor -1) Test (American Association for Clinical Chemistry)
- LH (Luteinizing Hormone) Test (American Association for Clinical Chemistry)
-
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) -- Head
(American College of Radiology, Radiological Society of North America)
Also in Spanish
Related Issues
- You and Your Endocrinologist (Hormone Health Network)
Specifics
-
Acromegaly
(National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases)
-
Empty Sella Syndrome
(National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke)
- Galactorrhea (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish
- Hyperprolactinemia Diagnosis and Treatment (Hormone Health Network) - PDF
- Hypopituitarism (Hormone Health Network) Also in Spanish
-
Septo-Optic Dysplasia
(National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke)
Genetics
-
Genetics Home Reference: combined pituitary hormone deficiency
(National Library of Medicine)
Videos and Tutorials
-
Pituitary gland
(Medical Encyclopedia)
Also in Spanish
Clinical Trials
-
ClinicalTrials.gov: Acromegaly
(National Institutes of Health)
-
ClinicalTrials.gov: Pituitary Diseases
(National Institutes of Health)
Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
Reference Desk
- Endocrine System (For Parents) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
Find an Expert
-
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
(National Institute of Child Health and Human Development)
Also in Spanish
- Find an Endocrinologist (Hormone Health Network)
-
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
-
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
Also in Spanish
Children
- Your Endocrine System (For Kids) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
Teenagers
- Endocrine System (For Teens) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
Women
- Sheehan's Syndrome (Postpartum Hypopituitarism) (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
Patient Handouts
- ACTH (cosyntropin) stimulation test (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- ACTH blood test (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Empty sella syndrome (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) blood test (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Gigantism (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Growth hormone stimulation test (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Hypopituitarism (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Luteinizing hormone (LH) blood test (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
- Pituitary infarction (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish