Risk factors for postoperative cerebrospinal fluid leakage after transsphenoidal surgery for pituitary adenoma: a meta-analysis and systematic review

OBJECTIVE: Postoperative cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leakage represents a challenge even for experienced pituitary surgeons. We aimed to quantitatively synthesize data from studies regarding the risk factors for postoperative CSF leakage after transsphenoidal surgery (TSS) for pituitary adenoma (PA). METHODS: PubMed, Web of Science, The Cochrane Library, Embase, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wanfang database, and VIP database were searched for case–control and cohort studies, focusing on the risk factors associated with postoperative CSF leakage after TSS for PA. Pooled odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals were calculated to determine the risk factors. RESULTS: A total of 34 case–control and cohort studies involving a total of 9,144 patients with PA were included in this systematic review. The overall rate of postoperative CSF leakage after TSS for PA was 5.6%. Tumor size, adenoma consistency, revision surgery, and intraoperative CSF leakage were independent risk factors for postoperative CSF leakage (ORs, 3.18–6.33). By contrast, the endoscopic approach showed a slight protective benefit compared with the microscopic approach in TSS (OR, 0.69). CONCLUSIONS: This review provides a comprehensive overview of the quality of the evidence base, informing clinical staff of the importance of screening risk factors for postoperative CSF leakage after TSS for PA. More attention should be paid to PA patients at high risk for CSF leakage after TSS to reduce complications and improve prognosis. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12883-021-02440-0.