Indications for Parathyroid Surgery

Surgery is the only definitive treatment for primary hyperparathyroidism, and it is therefore the first line treatment for the condition once the diagnosis has been made.  The disease can be separated into symptomatic and asymptomatic forms, but this is a rather blurry line as many people  who consider themselves asymptomatic before surgery feel much better afterwards when they are cured and their calcium and PTH levels have normalized.

Having a parathyroid adenoma seen on an ultrasound, sestamibi scan, or a 4D-CT scan is not a requirement for surgery.  The diagnosis is made through bloodwork alone, and scans should only be performed once the decision to proceed with parathyroidectomy has been made.