Radiomics model and clinical scale for the preoperative diagnosis of silent corticotroph adenomas

Silent corticotroph adenomas (SCAs) are a subtype of nonfunctioning pituitary adenomas that exhibit more aggressive behavior. However, rapid and accurate preoperative diagnostic methods are currently lacking.

The purpose of this study was to examine the differences between SCA and non-SCA features and to establish radiomics models and a clinical scale for rapid and accurate prediction.

A total of 260 patients (72 SCAs vs. 188 NSCAs) with nonfunctioning adenomas from Peking Union Medical College Hospital were enrolled in the study as the internal dataset. Thirty-five patients (6 SCAs vs. 29 NSCAs) from Fuzhou General Hospital were enrolled as the external dataset. Radiomics models and an SCA scale to preoperatively diagnose SCAs were established based on MR images and clinical features.

There were more female patients (internal dataset: p < 0.001; external dataset: p = 0.028) and more multiple microcystic changes (internal dataset: p < 0.001; external dataset: p = 0.012) in the SCA group. MRI showed more invasiveness (higher Knosp grades, p ≤ 0.001). The radiomics model achieved AUCs of 0.931 and 0.937 in the internal and external datasets, respectively. The clinical scale achieved an AUC of 0.877 and a sensitivity of 0.952 in the internal dataset and an AUC of 0.899 and a sensitivity of 1.0 in the external dataset.

Based on clinical information and imaging characteristics, the constructed radiomics model achieved high preoperative diagnostic ability. The SCA scale achieved the purpose of rapidity and practicality while ensuring sensitivity, which is conducive to simplifying clinical work.