Limitations
TUMOR RECURRENCE
In our study, there were still certain limitations to be considered when reviewing the results. First, although this is a prospective randomized controlled study, it is a single-center trial with a small sample size. Consequently, it inevitably lacks external validity. An increase in the sample size might be useful to eliminate or decrease some differences in the results between our study and previous studies. Second, the levels of hormones including PRL, GH, FSH and LH were not evaluated intraoperatively. Third, this study only observed the impact of propofol and sevoflurane on hormone levels 72 h postoperatively, and there has been no long-term follow-up that could reveal more effects of anesthetics on pituitary hormone levels and the prognosis of CP. In our future study, we will increase the sample size and examine these hormones levels intraoperatively. Moreover, a long-term follow-up is needed to examine the effects of hormones supplementation therapy, monitor the hormone levels and determine the incidence of tumor recurrence.