The Prognostic Value of Parathyroid Hormone for the Diagnosis of Early Postoperative Hypocalcemia after Thyroidectomy

Abstract

Postoperative hypocalcemia is the most frequent complication after thyroidectomy. One goal of our study was to investigate the parathyroid hormone (PTH) as the main predictor and early postoperative hypocalcemia. The study prospectively included 135 patients who from October 2011 to May 2013 was performed thyroidectomy. According to the results according to logistic regression analysis, postoperative PTH level below 10 pg/ml was the main predictor of postoperative hypocalcemia ( p 0,001). Sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive value of PTH 10 pg / ml for predicting postoperative hypocalcemia were 71%, 99%, 97% and 86%, respectively. It can be concluded that measurement of PTH after 1 hour, and / or on the following day after thyroidectomy hypocalcemia predicts with high sensitivity, specificity. And early detection of PTH allows timely appoint agents calcium and vitamin D to prevent clinical manifestations of postoperative hypoparathyroidism.

Keywords

• parathyroid hormone
• postoperative hypocalcemia
• hypoparathyroidism