A Case Report of Symptomatic Salivary Gland Rest within the Pituitary Gland

Abstract

Although salivary gland tissues in the posterior pituitary are occasionally observed in microscopic examination at autopsy, these tissues are considered clinically silent. Only three examples of symptomatic salivary tissues in the pituitary have been previously reported. We report a case of symptomatic salivary gland rest within the pituitary gland. A 19-year-old woman complained of headache for 2 months, and dizziness, nausea, blurred vision for 1 week. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed a 1.8 cm-sized mass in sella turcica with hyperintensity on T1-weighted images. Basal hormone levels and combined pituitary stimulation test were normal. The trans-sphenoidal approach of tumor removal was performed and a pathological examination confirmed salivary gland rest without any evidence of a pituitary adenoma. The symptoms had disappeared, except for post-operative diabetes insipidus.