Skip to main content

Advertisement

Log in

Remedial Operation for Primary Hyperparathyroidism

  • Published:
World Journal of Surgery Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Background

Remedial surgery for patients with persistent or recurrent primary hyperparathyroidism (1° HPT) remains a significant challenge. Cervical reexploration is technically difficult; reoperative neck anatomy is distorted by fibrosis and, as a result, remedial 1° HPT patients carry an increased risk of injury to the recurrent (RLN) and superior laryngeal nerve(s) as well as to normal residual parathyroid tissue. Causative hyperfunctioning parathyroid tissue is also more frequently ectopic in the remedial setting and can thus be difficult to localize.

Methods

This report assimilates the current data underlying preoperative, intraoperative and postoperative remedial 1° HPT management and presents an evidence-based algorithm for the management of remedial parathyroid disease. Recommendations are graded according to the quality of supporting data using the system initially developed by Sackett (Chest 95:2S–4S, 1989) and subsequently modified by Heinrich et al. (Ann Surg 243:154–168, 2006).

Results

Recent advances in preoperative localization and intraoperative adjuncts have lead to substantial improvements in outcomes after remedial surgery. Preoperative localization techniques, including sestamibi scintigraphy (MIBI), high resolution ultrasound (US), US-guided fine needle aspiration (FNA) and selective venous sampling (SVS), coupled with intraoperative adjuncts such as the rapid parathyroid hormone (PTH) assay have lead to reoperative cure rates as high as 96 percent. Nonetheless, management of remedial 1° HPT varies significantly between surgeons and no formal recommendations standardizing the care of these patients have been published.

Conclusions

Despite the significant challenges associated with remedial surgery for 1° HPT, excellent outcomes can be reproducibly achieved when proper pre-, intra-, and postoperative management is employed.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
Fig. 8

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Mandl F (1926) Therapeutisher versuch bein falls von ostitis fibrosa generalisata mittles. Extirpation eines epithelkorperchen tumors. Wein Klin Wochenschr Zentral 143:245–284

    Google Scholar 

  2. Bauer W, Albright F, Aub JC (1930) A case of osteitis fibrosa cystica (osteomalacia?) with evidence of hyperactivity of the para-thyroid bodies. Metabolic Study I. J Clin Invest 8:229–248

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Carney JA (1996) The glandulae parathyroideae of Ivar Sandstrom. Contributions from two continents. Am J Surg Pathol 20:1123–1144

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Udelsman R, Donovan PI (2006) Remedial parathyroid surgery: changing trends in 130 consecutive cases. Ann Surg 244:471–479

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Jaskowiak N, Norton JA, Alexander HR et al (1996) A prospective trial evaluating a standard approach to reoperation for missed parathyroid adenoma. Ann Surg 224:308–320; discussion 320–321

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Shen W, Duren M, Morita E et al (1996) Reoperation for persistent or recurrent primary hyperparathyroidism. Arch Surg 131:861–867; discussion 867–769

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Beazley RM, Costa J, Ketcham AS (1975) Reoperative parathyroid surgery. Am J Surg 130:427–429

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Pradeep PV, Mishra A, Agarwal G et al (2008) Long-term outcome after parathyroidectomy in patients with advanced primary hyperparathyroidism and associated vitamin D deficiency. World J Surg 32:829–835

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Sackett DL (1989) Rules of evidence and clinical recommendations on the use of antithrombotic agents. Chest 95:2S–4S

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Heinrich S, Schafer M, Rousson V et al (2006) Evidence-based treatment of acute pancreatitis: a look at established paradigms. Ann Surg 243:154–168

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Mandal AK, Udelsman R (1998) Secondary hyperparathyroidism is an expected consequence of parathyroidectomy for primary hyperparathyroidism: a prospective study. Surgery 124:1021–1026; discussion 1026–1027

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Lo Gerfo P (1999) Bilateral neck exploration for parathyroidectomy under local anesthesia: a viable technique for patients with coexisting thyroid disease with or without sestamibi scanning. Surgery 126:1011–1014; discussion 1014–1015

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Udelsman R (2002) Six hundred fifty-six consecutive explorations for primary hyperparathyroidism. Ann Surg 235:665–670; discussion 670–672

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Ambrogini E, Cetani F, Cianferotti L et al (2007) Surgery or surveillance for mild asymptomatic primary hyperparathyroidism: a prospective, randomized clinical trial. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 92:3114–3121

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. Bollerslev J, Jansson S, Mollerup CL et al (2007) Medical observation, compared with parathyroidectomy, for asymptomatic primary hyperparathyroidism: a prospective, randomized trial. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 92:1687–1692

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Rao DS, Phillips ER, Divine GW et al (2004) Randomized controlled clinical trial of surgery versus no surgery in patients with mild asymptomatic primary hyperparathyroidism. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 89:5415–5422

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Pasieka JL, Parsons LL, Demeure MJ et al (2002) Patient-based surgical outcome tool demonstrating alleviation of symptoms following parathyroidectomy in patients with primary hyperparathyroidism. World J Surg 26:942–949

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Roman S, Sosa JA (2007) Psychiatric and cognitive aspects of primary hyperparathyroidism. Curr Opin Oncol 19:1–5

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Silverberg SJ, Shane E, Jacobs TP et al (1999) A 10-year prospective study of primary hyperparathyroidism with or without parathyroid surgery. N Engl J Med 341:1249–1255

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Bilezikian JP, Khan AA, Potts JT Jr, on behalf of the Third International Workshop on the Management of Asymptomatic Primary Hyperthyroidism (2009) Guidelines for the management of asymptomatic primary hyperparathyroidism: summary statement from the third international workshop. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 94:335–339

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  21. Stavrakis AI, Ituarte PH, Ko CY et al (2007) Surgeon volume as a predictor of outcomes in inpatient and outpatient endocrine surgery. Surgery 142:887–899; discussion 887–899

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  22. Sosa JA, Bowman HM, Tielsch JM et al (1998) The importance of surgeon experience for clinical and economic outcomes from thyroidectomy. Ann Surg 228:320–330

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Herrera MF, Gamoba-Dominguez A (1997) Parathyroid embryology, anatomy, and pathology. In: Clark OH, Duh Q-Y (eds) Textbook of endocrine surgery. W.B. Saunders Company, Philadelphia, pp 277–283

    Google Scholar 

  24. Cheung PS, Borgstrom A, Thompson NW (1989) Strategy in reoperative surgery for hyperparathyroidism. Arch Surg 124:676–680

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. Weber CJ, Sewell CW, McGarity WC (1994) Persistent and recurrent sporadic primary hyperparathyroidism: histopathology, complications, and results of reoperation. Surgery 116:991–998

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  26. Mettler FA Jr, Thomadsen BR, Bhargavan M et al (2008) Medical radiation exposure in the US in 2006: preliminary results. Health Phys 95:502–507

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  27. Pappu S, Donovan P, Cheng D et al (2005) Sestamibi scans are not all created equally. Arch Surg 140:383–386

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  28. Seehofer D, Steinmuller T, Rayes N et al (2004) Parathyroid hormone venous sampling before reoperative surgery in renal hyperparathyroidism: comparison with noninvasive localization procedures and review of the literature. Arch Surg 139:1331–1338

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  29. Hessman O, Stalberg P, Sundin A et al (2008) High success rate of parathyroid reoperation may be achieved with improved localization diagnosis. World J Surg 32:774–781; discussion 782–783

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  30. Lorberboym M, Minski I, Macadziob S et al (2003) Incremental diagnostic value of preoperative 99mTc-MIBI SPECT in patients with a parathyroid adenoma. J Nucl Med 44:904–908

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  31. Mortenson MM, Evans DB, Lee JE et al (2008) Parathyroid exploration in the reoperative neck: improved preoperative localization with 4D-computed tomography. J Am Coll Surg 206:888–895; discussion 895–896

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  32. Rodriquez JM, Tezelman S, Siperstein AE et al (1994) Localization procedures in patients with persistent or recurrent hyperparathyroidism. Arch Surg 129:870–875

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  33. Neumann DR, Esselstyn CB Jr, MacIntyre WJ et al (1997) Regional body FDG-PET in postoperative recurrent hyperparathyroidism. J Comput Assist Tomogr 21:25–28

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  34. Cook GJ, Wong JC, Smellie WJ et al (1998) [11C]Methionine positron emission tomography for patients with persistent or recurrent hyperparathyroidism after surgery. Eur J Endocrinol 139:195–197

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  35. Maser C, Donovan P, Santos F et al (2006) Sonographically guided fine needle aspiration with rapid parathyroid hormone assay. Ann Surg Oncol 13:1690–1695

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  36. Kiblut NK, Cussac JF, Soudan B et al (2004) Fine needle aspiration and intraparathyroid intact parathyroid hormone measurement for reoperative parathyroid surgery. World J Surg 28:1143–1147

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  37. Reitz RE, Pollard JJ, Wang CA et al (1969) Localization of parathyroid adenomas by selective venous catheterization and radioimmunoassay. N Engl J Med 281:348–351

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  38. Reidel MA, Schilling T, Graf S et al (2006) Localization of hyperfunctioning parathyroid glands by selective venous sampling in reoperation for primary or secondary hyperparathyroidism. Surgery 140:907–913; discussion 913

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  39. Udelsman R, Aruny JE, Donovan PI et al (2003) Rapid parathyroid hormone analysis during venous localization. Ann Surg 237:714–719; discussion 719–721

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  40. Yen TW, Wang TS, Doffek KM et al (2008) Reoperative parathyroidectomy: an algorithm for imaging and monitoring of intraoperative parathyroid hormone levels that results in a successful focused approach. Surgery 144:611–619; discussion 619–621

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  41. Wang TS, Udelsman R (2007) Remedial surgery for primary hyperparathyroidism. Adv Surg 41:1–15

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  42. Moley JF, Lairmore TC, Doherty GM et al (1999) Preservation of the recurrent laryngeal nerves in thyroid and parathyroid reoperations. Surgery 126:673–677; discussion 677–679

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  43. Chae AW, Perricone A, Brumund KT et al (2008) Outpatient video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) for ectopic mediastinal parathyroid adenoma: a case report and review of the literature. J Laparoendosc Adv Surg Tech A 18:383–390

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  44. Gold JS, Donovan PI, Udelsman R (2006) Partial median sternotomy: an attractive approach to mediastinal parathyroid disease. World J Surg 30:1234–1239

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  45. Norman J, Denham D (1998) Minimally invasive radioguided parathyroidectomy in the reoperative neck. Surgery 124:1088–1092; discussion 1092–1093

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  46. Jaskowiak NT, Sugg SL, Helke J et al (2002) Pitfalls of intraoperative quick parathyroid hormone monitoring and gamma probe localization in surgery for primary hyperparathyroidism. Arch Surg 137:659–668; discussion 668–669

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  47. Norton JA, Shawker TH, Jones BL et al (1986) Intraoperative ultrasound and reoperative parathyroid surgery: an initial evaluation. World J Surg 10:631–639

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  48. Kern KA, Shawker TH, Doppman JL et al (1987) The use of high-resolution ultrasound to locate parathyroid tumors during reoperations for primary hyperparathyroidism. World J Surg 11:579–585

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  49. Chen H, Pruhs Z, Starling JR et al (2005) Intraoperative parathyroid hormone testing improves cure rates in patients undergoing minimally invasive parathyroidectomy. Surgery 138:583–587; discussion 587–590

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  50. Thompson GB, Grant CS, Perrier ND et al (1999) Reoperative parathyroid surgery in the era of sestamibi scanning and intraoperative parathyroid hormone monitoring. Arch Surg 134:699–705

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  51. Tonelli F, Spini SS, Tommasi M et al (2000) Intraoperative parathormone measurement in patients with multiple endocrine neoplasia type I syndrome and hyperparathyroidism. World J Surg 24:556–563

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  52. Sokoll LJ, Drew H, Udelsman R (2000) Intraoperative parathyroid hormone analysis: a study of 200 consecutive cases. Clin Chem 46:1662–1668

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  53. Clerici T, Brandle M, Lange J et al (2004) Impact of intraoperative parathyroid hormone monitoring in the prediction of multiglandular parathyroid disease. World J Surg 28:187–192

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  54. Di Stasio E, Carrozza C, Lombardi CP et al (2007) Parathyroidectomy monotored by intra-operative PTH: the relevance of the 20 min end-point. Clin Biochem 40:595–603

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  55. Yarbrough DE, Thompson GB, Kasperbauer JL et al (2004) Intraoperative electromyographic monitoring of the recurrent laryngeal nerve in reoperative thyroid and parathyroid surgery. Surgery 136:1107–1115

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  56. Harman CR, Grant CS, Hay ID et al (1998) Indications, technique, and efficacy of alcohol injection of enlarged parathyroid glands in patients with primary hyperparathyroidism. Surgery 124:1011–1019; discussion 1019–1020

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  57. Cercueil JP, Jacob D, Verges B et al (1998) Percutaneous ethanol injection into parathyroid adenomas: mid- and long-term results. Eur Radiol 8:1565–1569

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The authors thank James A. Brink, MD, Chairman of the Department of Diagnostic Imaging at the Yale University School of Medicine, for his assistance in defining radiation exposures associated with preoperative imaging studies employed for remedial 1° HPT.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Robert Udelsman.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Prescott, J.D., Udelsman, R. Remedial Operation for Primary Hyperparathyroidism. World J Surg 33, 2324–2334 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00268-009-9962-0

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00268-009-9962-0

Keywords

Navigation