Central Diabetes Insipidus: A Case Series and Literature Review

Central diabetes insipidus (CDI) is a rare disorder of water homeostasis characterized by the excretion of a large volume of hypotonic urine resulting from deficient secretion of arginine vasopressin. It is the most common form of diabetes insipidus and manifests when more than 90% of the vasopresinergic magnocellular neurons have been destroyed. The correct diagnosis is always a challenge as it is not always possible to differentiate the different etiologies of CDI based on clinical, hormonal, and radiological examination alone. Histopathology may have to be resorted to at times to provide a definitive diagnosis. In this case series we describe five patients of CDI with varied aetioogies who presented to our tertiary centre. The case series describes and discusses the clinical presentation, evaluation and management of these patients who presented with diabetes insipidus. The aetiologies discussed are extremely rare and required histopathological examination for the final confirmation of diagnosis.