THE FIRST 50 CASES OF PRIMARY HYPERPARATHYROIDISM TREATED BY AN ENDOCRINE SURGERY TEAM

Background. Primary hyperparathyroidism (HPT) is a common endocrine di sease treated very effectively by surgery. There have been changes in the management of parathyroid surgery in our hospital: since 1991, all patients have been treated by a service of endocrine surgery. Objecti ve. To analyze the outcome of the first 50 patients treated in the end ocrine surgery service. Methods. A prospective analysis of clinical ch aracteristics, laboratory studies, intraoperative findings, surgical c om plications and outcome of 50 patients with primary HPT seen between July 1991 and March 1994 was performed. Results. Ten patients were ma le and 40 female with a mean age of 53 years. A parathyroid adenoma wa s found in 43 patients, a parathyroid hyperplasia in five, a double ad enoma in one and an adenoma in a supernumerary gland in one patient. S urgical cure of the disease was achieved in 96% of the patients after one surgical procedure and in 100% during the same hospital stay after repeat cervical exploration. Conclusions. Our results support the use of surgical cervical exploration in the treatment of primary HPT.