The covid-19 impact on the pituitary gland

The Coronavirus 2019 (Covid-19) disease pandemic continues to infect a great number of human population, causing severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Global healthcare system has been significantly burdened since the percentages of mortality and morbidity are highly rising. As time passes and more studies have been conducted, it is increasingly clear that Covid-19 does not only affect the respiratory system, but has also multiple effects on cardiovascular, endocrine and neurological systems. Detailed research was performed via the PubMed database using the following keywords: covid-19, infection, impact, pituitary gland, vaccination. The research was made in the articles from 2019, when Covid-19 first emerged and subsequently. Covid-19 virus has cellular access through the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor. This process requires the transmembrane serine protease 2 (TMPRSS2) protein. Both ACE2 and TMPRSS2 are widely expressed in many endocrine glands. This review analyzes the endocrine manifestations of Covid-19 on the pituitary glands. On this review we underline the most common pituitary diseases that Covid-19 is responsible for, which are the pituitary apoplexy, hypophysitis, hypopituitarism and adrenal cortex insufficiency.