Infarction of prolactin-secreting or growth hormone-secreting pituitary adenomas is not unusual. However, Infarction of ACTH-secreting
adenomas has rarely been reported. Cyclical course of Cushing's syndrome alternating with adrenal insufficiency due to recurrent
infarction of an ACTH-secreting pituitary adenoma has not been reported. We report here a 20-year-old lady who presented with
florid signs of Cushing's syndrome but was found to have adrenal insufficiency on biochemical evaluation. Magnetic resonance
imaging (MRI) of the pituitary gland showed that she had infarction of an ACTH-secreting macroadenoma. Over the next 6 years,
her disease ran a cyclical course characterized by periods of hypercortisolism alternating with adrenal insufficiency due
to repeated episodes of infarctions of the ACTH-secreting pituitary macroadenoma with corresponding changes in the pituitary
adenoma on serial MRIs. The case alerts clinicians to this possibility when a patient presents with clinical picture of Cushing's
syndrome but has adrenal insufficiency on biochemical testing. It also suggests that silent or subclinical infarction of pituitary
adenomas is not uncommon and is probably under diagnosed.
Key Words apoplexy - Cushing's disease - adrenal insufficiency