Preoperative Fasting C-Peptide Acts as a Promising Predictor of Improved Glucose Tolerance in Patients With Acromegaly After Transsphenoidal Surgery: A Retrospective Study of 64 Cases From a Large Pituitary Center in China

Purpose: Abnormal glucose metabolism is one of the most frequent acromegaly complications. Improvement of glucose metabolism can be observed only in half of acromegaly patients after surgery. We aimed to investigate the risk factors for determining abnormal glucose metabolism before surgery in patients with acromegaly, and to explore the predictors of improved preoperative glucose intolerance after surgery.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 64 patients who received transsphenoidal surgery for acromegaly. Growth hormone (GH), insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) and glucose metabolism were assessed before, immediately after, and 3 months after surgery. Glucose metabolic parameters included glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), plasma glucose (PG), C-peptide (CP), insulin (INS), and the indices of β-cell function, insulin sensitivity, and insulin resistance (IR).

Results: Preoperatively, 18 patients (28.1%) had diabetes (DM), 34 (53.1%) had prediabetes (PreDM), and 12 (18.8%) had normal glucose tolerance (NGT). All the indices of pancreatic β-cell function were significantly lower in patients with DM than those with PreDM and NGT (all P < 0.005). IGF-1 was significantly positively correlated with insulin sensitivity and IR ( P < 0.05), while GH was not. Postoperatively, glucose tolerance was improved in 71.2% of patients (37/52) with preoperative glucose intolerance. Insulin sensitivity was increased, while β-cell function and IR were decreased in most patients after surgery, regardless of whether their acromegaly achieved remission. A multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that preoperative fasting C-peptide (FCP, OR = 2.639, P = 0.022), disposition index (DI, OR = 1.397, P = 0.043) and Predictor-2 (OR = 0.578, P = 0.035) were determined to be the predictors for improved glucose tolerance status after surgery. Afterwards, through Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analyses, FCP >2.445 ng/ml was the best independent predictor, with an 86.6% PPV (positive predictive value) and a 74.5% NPV (negative predictive value).

Conclusions: Preoperative high FCP is a promising postsurgical predictor of improved glucose tolerance in patients with acromegaly. Oral glucose tolerance testing (OGTT) and HbA1c should be monitored regularly after surgery, and diabetes management should be adjusted based on the patient's latest glucose tolerance status.