Background: With increased biochemical screening, primary hyperparathyroidism (pHPT) is often discovered incidentally whilst patients are asymptomatic.
Objective: To assess the impact of parathyroidectomy on neuropsychological symptoms and biochemical parameters in people with asymptomatic pHPT, whilst controlling for the surgical procedure. PATIENTS/DESIGN/MEASUREMENTS: Twenty-four patients with asymptomatic pHPT requiring parathyroidectomy, in accordance with National Institutes for Health recommendations, were recruited prospectively. A control group of 23 subjects was recruited simultaneously from consecutive patients undergoing diagnostic hemithyroidectomy (HT) for benign thyroid nodules. Operations were performed by a single surgeon. Biochemical investigations and neuropsychological symptoms were measured preoperatively and 3 months after surgery. Neuropsychological symptoms were measured using the Hospital Anxiety (HAD-A) and Depression (HAD-D) scales and the Mood Rating Scale (MRS).
Results: Postoperatively, calcium and parathyroid hormone normalized in all patients in the pHPT group. Patients with pHPT showed a significant improvement in neuropsychological symptoms with a pre- and postoperative mean change of 2·45 ± 2·57 (P < 0·05) on HAD-A, 2·79 ± 3·85 (P < 0·05) on HAD-D, and 3·2 ± 4·57 (P < 0·05) on MRS, parameters that were unaltered in the HT group. The differences between the two groups remained statistically significant after adjustment for age and sex for HAD-D (mean change 2·8, 95% CI = 0·3, 5·3, P = 0·025) and MRS (mean difference 3·5, 95% CI = 0·4, 6·7, P = 0·027) but not for HAD-A (mean difference 1·5, 95% CI = -0·8, 3·8, P = 0·20). For all three mental health scores, there were no significant associations with either age or sex.
Conclusions: Asymptomatic pHPT is associated with neuropsychological symptoms that improve after parathyroidectomy.
© 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.