Acute pancreatitis. A rare complication of primary hyperparathyroidism (pHPT)

Background. Primary hyperparathyroidism (pHPT) in childhood and adolescence is a rare disease. Therefore diagnosis often is delayed. Methods. We report an a 13 year old boy, who sufferd from nausea,abdominal pain and weight loss for 9 months. We diagnosed an adenoma of the parathyro id gland and an acute pancreatitis in the course of a hypercalcemic crisis. Results. After stabilizing the patient, the adenoma was removed surgically. No problems occured after the surgical treatment. Within 3 months the boy regained his original weight. Conclusion. Symptoms like nausea, abdominal pain, cephalea, hypertonia, ano rexia and renal stones could be a hint for pHPT. The coincidence of pHPT an d pancreatitis is extremely rare. According to references in the literatur this association is most likely related to elevated calcium levels due to a dvanced pHPT.