This Article  • Full text  • PDF  • Send to a friend  • Save in My Folder  • Save to citation manager  • Permissions  Citing Articles  • Citation map  • Citing articles on HighWire  • Citing articles on ISI (28)  • Contact me when this article is cited  Related Content  • Related article  • Similar articles in this journal  Topic Collections  • Endocrine Surgery  • Otolaryngology/ Head & Neck Surgery  • Alert me on articles by topic

Frederic L. Starr, MD; Robert DeCresce, MD; Richard A. Prinz, MD

Arch Surg. 2001;136:536-542.

Hypothesis  Use of intraoperative measurement of intact parathyroid hormone (iPTH) to confirm complete excision of hyperfunctioning parathyroid tissue does not improve overall operative success rates.

Design  Case series of patients undergoing parathyroidectomy with or without intraoperative iPTH measurement.

Setting  University teaching hospital.

Patients and Interventions  Fifty patients undergoing parathyroidectomy before our institution of intraoperative iPTH sampling in March 1999 (group 1) were compared with 50 patients undergoing parathyroidectomy after this technique was adopted (group 2). Overall, 100 patients underwent operation between December 1996 and May 2000. Serum calcium and iPTH levels were measured at 1- and 3-month intervals. Intraoperative frozen sections and operative times were also analyzed.

Results  Mean preoperative calcium levels were 2.85 and 2.82 mmol/L (11.4 and 11.3 mg/dL) in groups 1 and 2, respectively. One-month postoperative calcium values were identical in both groups at 2.35 mmol/L (9.4 mg/dL) (group 1 SD = 0.18 [0.74], group 2 SD = 0.20 [0.82]). At 1 month, all but 1 patient in group 1 had normalized calcium values (2% failure rate), while 3 patients in group 2 (6%) remained hypercalcemic. All 3 patients in group 2 had intraoperative iPTH levels that returned to normal. There was a significant difference in the number of intraoperative frozen sections between groups, with a mean (SD) of 3.4 (1.7) in group 1 and 2.0 (1.6) in group 2 (P<.01). There was no significant difference in operative times between groups.

Conclusions  Use of intraoperative iPTH sampling did not significantly affect the overall success of parathyroidectomy, as determined by postoperative normocalcemia. There was, however, a significant decrease in the number of frozen sections sent at operation.

From the Departments of General Surgery (Drs Starr and Prinz) and Pathology (Dr DeCresce), Rush-Presbyterian-St Luke's Medical Center, Chicago, Ill.

RELATED ARTICLE

This Month in Archives of Surgery
Arch Surg. 2001;136(5):498.
FULL TEXT  

THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES

Intra-operative Parathyroid Hormone Monitoring in Patients with Parathyroid Cancer
Solorzano et al.
Ann. Surg. Oncol. 2007;14:3216-3222.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Which Intraoperative Parathyroid Hormone Assay Criterion Best Predicts Operative Success?: A Study of 352 Consecutive Patients
Chiu et al.
Arch Surg 2006;141:483-488.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Rapid Intraoperative Immunoassay of Parathyroid Hormone and Other Hormones: A New Paradigm for Point-of-Care Testing
Sokoll et al.
Clin. Chem. 2004;50:1126-1135.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

An Alternative Analysis of Intraoperative Parathyroid Hormone Data May Improve the Ability to Detect Multiglandular Disease
Gauger et al.
Arch Surg 2004;139:164-169.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Pitfalls of Intraoperative Quick Parathyroid Hormone Monitoring and Gamma Probe Localization in Surgery for Primary Hyperparathyroidism
Jaskowiak et al.
Arch Surg 2002;137:659-669.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Intraoperative Parathyroid Hormone Measurement in Patients With Secondary Hyperparathyroidism
Chou et al.
Arch Surg 2002;137:341-344.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT