Repair of the sellar floor using bioresorbable polydioxanone foils after endoscopic endonasal pituitary surgery

Postoperative CSF leakage is the most common unwanted sequela of transnasal pituitary surgery. The individual anatomy, the extent of the sellar opening, and the occurrence of an intraoperative CSF leak add to the risk of postoperative rhinorrhea. Despite the current sophistication and recent developments in pituitary surgery, watertight closure of the sellar floor remains a matter of concern. Improvements and additions to the technical armamentarium of sellar reconstruction are therefore still desirable.

The authors present a closure technique of the sellar floor using a bioresorbable polydioxanone foil, which is placed between the dura and the bony margins of the open sellar floor to keep the intrasellar implants in place and to withstand the pressure arising from the intracranial compartment.

The technique was used in a technical case series of 30 patients, and in all patients the floor could be sufficiently reconstructed. CSF flow intraoperatively was documented in 10 cases (33.3%). Postoperative CSF rhinorrhea was detected in one patient (3.3%). No complications could be attributed to the technique or the material during a mean follow-up period of 477 days. The foils can easily be identified on MR images and CT scans and therefore do not affect the postoperative radiological assessment.

The described technique is an easy, inexpensive, and reliable method for sellar floor reconstruction and has a low CSF leakage rate. It is recommended when the risk of a postoperative CSF leak is high and there is still enough bony margin of the sellar floor left that enables a sufficient fixation of the foil.