We understand this stuff is a little confusing. So we made the Calcium-Pro app. This app will make high calcium & parathyroid problems easy to understand!

Our doctors are in top 1% of all surgeons in the U.S.

Our hospital is rated #1 in all of Florida, and one of the best in the country in Endocrinology and Head/Neck Surgery (that's because of us!) Verify

Read our Blog!
Our doctors write interesting stories about patients we see every day. This is the coolest thing we do!
May 2013

Follow our blog on Twitter and get cool and interesting parathyroid stories sent to you!
@parathyroidblog

Parathyroid glands control the amount of calcium in our blood and bones. About 1 in 700 people (1 in 200 women over 50) develop a parathyroid gland tumor causing parathyroid disease, called: "hyperparathyroidism". Hyperparathyroidism is a destructive disease that causes high blood calcium--which leads to serious health problems--even early death. It can be cured in most patients in less than 20 minutes with parathyroid tumor removal. We've arranged parathyroid topics on separate pages. Normal parathyroid gland function is presented first. Hyperparathyroidism (parathyroid disease) is discussed next including high blood calcium, symptoms and complications of hyperparathyroidism including osteoporosis, chronic fatigue, kidney stones, stroke, and increased cancer risks. The third section presents treatment of parathyroid tumors including the the new mini-parathyroid operation that everybody can have. This "band-aid" operation can change your life! If you are reading Parathyroid.com then you probably have a parathyroid tumor that needs to be removed.

Section 1:  Introduction to Parathyroid Glands

Introduction to Parathyroid Glands.  Learn what parathyroid glands are, where parathyroid glands are located in our necks, and what parathyroid glands do.

Normal Parathyroid Gland Function.  How parathyroid glands control the calcium in our blood, nervous system, and bones. If you have high calcium, you almost certainly have a parathyroid problem.

Section 2:  Parathyroid Disease and Hyperparathyroidism

  Hyperparathyroidism is the principle disease of parathyroid glands. Hyperparathyroidism occurs when one of the parathyroids develops a tumor which makes too much parathyroid hormone leading to high calcium and other bad symptoms. This tumor must be removed. Watch the video of our surgeons performing the entire operation in less than 13 minutes. Watch our animation; this 5 minute video will give you a great head start on this website.

The Symptoms of parathyroid disease (hyper-parathyroid-ism) leading to high blood calcium are listed here and discussed. Many of you will be amazed what this small hormone-tumor will do to you, it even increases your risk of stroke, heart disease, and cancer.

Diagnosing Hyperparathyroidism and parathyroid disease is easy. Blood calcium levels and parathyroid hormone levels will make the diagnosis. If you have high calcium, you almost certainly have a parathyroid tumor. If you have an iPad, Android, or smart phone, then get the CalciumPro app. It is much better at telling you if you have a parathyroid problem than your doctor is. Buy in Apple Store. Buy in Android Store

Pictures and Photos of Parathyroid Tumors. See photos of the tumors we removed from our patients during a two week time period. This will allow you to compare your calcium and PTH levels to others who have already had surgery... so you can see what may be in your neck. Very informative. This is a must read page.

Low Vitamin D Levels.  95% of patients with primary hyperparathyroidism (a parathyroid tumor) have low vitamin D. This is the body protecting itself, but is commonly misunderstood by endocrinologists. If your doctor said you have low vitamin D which is causing your high calcium, read this page because that is impossible. Then, get the Calcium-Pro app: it will graph your vitamin D and show you what is wrong.

Diagnosing Hyperparathyroidism--ADVANCED.This is our best page on how to diagnose parathyroid disease. If you are a patient you should read this after you have read our first page on the diagnosis of hyperparathyroidism. This is an important page you need to copy and take to your doctors. Read about parathyroid surgery and watch the operation movie before you read this page.

Section 3:  Surgery for Parathyroid Tumors and Hyperparathyroidism:
Old 'Big' Parathyroid Surgery and New 'Mini' Parathyroid Surgery

The Standard Parathyroid Operation.  Since 1925 the treatment for parathyroid disease (hyperparathyroidism) has been surgery. This 'standard' parathyroid operation is still performed today like it was back then...but nobody should ever have this big operation!  If your surgeon doesn't perform at least two parathyroid operations per week, then go somewhere else.

Minimally Invasive Parathyroid Surgery.  Mini-parathyroid surgery (MIRP) was invented in 1993. This page discusses how virtually all parathyroid patients should have mini-surgery -- But you must find an experienced parathyroid surgeon... All patients should read this page and the next. Do not let your doctor tell you that you can't get mini surgery because your scan is negative. Everybody can have mini surgery. Period.

The MIRP Procedure.  Look into the details of the MIRP procedure--a mini operation that cures over 99% of parathyroid patients. The operation uses only minimal anesthesia, typically takes less than 20 minutes and patients go home about one or two hours later. Heck, the incision is usually only 1 inch. Click Here to see the a movie of this operation. This is state of the art in parathyroid treatment. There is no blood and is very informative. The entire operation to examine four parathyroid glands and remove two parathyroid tumors takes under 13 minutes.

Narrative that goes along with the 13 minute parathyroid operation video. This is a MUST READ SECTION.  This page describes all that is happening during the video of the mini-parathyroid operation. There is so much happening behind the scenes that allow this complex operation to be done so quickly that we made a page here so you can learn what is going on and why we do the things we do.

Surgery Cure Rates.  The cure rate following parathyroid surgery can be dramatically altered by the experience of the surgeon. Even the New York Times has written about this problem. Be careful about choosing your surgeon for your parathyroid operation.

Become our Patient.  Instructions on how to become our patient like more than 2,500 patients do each year at the new Norman Parathyroid Center at Tampa General Hospital. View our MAP to see where our patients come from.

Section 4:  More Important Information - and - Finding the Tumor

Age Distribution of Parathyroid Disease.  Although parathyroid disease occurs most commonly in people over 50, young people get it too. This page shows who gets hyperparathyroidism and how common it is for all age groups.

Osteoporosis occurs because the parathyroid tumor takes calcium out of your bones. Remove the parathyroid tumor and regain bone density and bone strength. This kind of osteoporosis is nearly 100% reversible.

Causes of Parathyroid Tumors.  This page is advanced and discusses why and how the parathyroid glands develop into tumors. Don't start here, it will confuse you. Get the app--it will tell you what your problem is!

Causes of High Blood Calcium.  It is never normal to have a high blood calcium. We discuss the different diseases that can cause your blood calcium to go high. Read this if your doctor told you that your high calcium might be caused by cancer - you do not have cancer - you have hyperparathyroidism.

Finding the Bad Parathyroid Gland.  Parathyroid Glands are normally very small and can be very hard to find. Your surgeon's experience is the most important factor in finding the bad parathyroid gland--so please do NOT emphasize the scans discussed on these page. The biggest mistake EVERYBODY makes is that they worry about the parathyroid scan and believe the scan. Parathyroid scans are wrong more than they are right folks! It is not about the scan... it is about the skill and experience of your surgeon. Also discusses the danger of parathyroid needle biopsy.

Sestamibi Scanning is a very poor way to determine which parathyroid gland has developed a tumor. This test is wrong more than it is right. The scan is very dependent upon experience of the people doing it. If your scan is negative (and most are!), forget you ever had it. Remember, you don't care about the scan--you care about the skill and experience of your surgeon. Stop getting scans! We prefer negative scans--those are often the easiest operations!

Do I have Just One Bad Parathyroid Gland? is by far the most common question ever asked. About 70 percent of all patients have just one bad parathyroid gland (a single tumor) and three normal parathyroid glands. About 30% have two bad glands, which is why your surgeon should look at all of them!

Parathyroid Anatomy is described on this page--if you understand parathyroid anatomy you will understand why parathyroid surgery requires a lot of experience. The more experience your surgeon has, the higher the chance of cure and the lower the chance of complications.

Needing a Second Operation -- About 15-18% of people need a second parathyroid operation because their surgeon with too little experience could not find the parathyroid tumor. This page is for those of you who have had an unsuccessful operation and now need a second (or third) operation to find that elusive parathyroid tumor. We perform between 2 and 4 re-operations every day. 20% of our business is re-operative surgery after a failed operation somewhere else. 

Section 5:  Rare Parathyroid Problems
HypO-parathyroid disease, parathyroid cancer, parathyroids & pregnancy, and others...
[Do NOT start here--these are rare problems]

Parathyroid Cancer is extremely RARE.  Do not start reading this web site here!  Less than 1 in 5000 of parathyroid tumors are cancers. A lot of people read this page, but really nobody should read it because parathyroid cancer is so rare... you don't have it! Go to a different page.

Development of OTHER types of cancer due to Hyperparathyroidism. People who don't treat their hyperparathyroidism have a higher (sometimes dramatically higher) chance of developing Breast Cancer, Prostate Cancer, and to a lesser extent, Colon and Kidney cancer. This is discussed at the bottom of our page of Symptoms. If you didn't read this... you need to. Parathyroid disease is not a disease that should be "observed".

Hyp0parathyroidism is an uncommon complication of parathyroid or thyroid surgery--when all the parathyroids have been removed. This is HypO = too little.  Not good... This is almost always due to removal of all 4 parathyroid glands by a surgeon with little experience performing parathyroid surgery.

FHH.  FHH is a very rare genetic problem with high blood calcium and low urine calcium. If you have never heard of FHH, then do NOT read this page. This is for people who were told they have FHH because their 24-hour urine calcium is low--99% chance you do NOT have FHH.

Surgeon-Induced HypOparathyroidism. This page shows the results of the world's largest study of patients who were made hypoparathyroid by a surgeon who mistakenly removed all of their parathyroid glands. This is hyp0parathyroidism... too little parathyroid hormone due to a surgeon's mistake.

Treating Parathyroid Disease with Sensipar.  Sensipar (Cinacalcet) is a drug made for patients with secondary hyperparathyroidism due to kidney failure who are on dialysis. It has been tried on patients with primary hyperparathyroidism (what this entire web site is about) and it doesn't work, and make make patients worse. This drug should not be used unless you are on dialysis. Sensipar should NOT be used if your calcium is high.

Parathyroid disease during Pregnancy. This is a rare problem, but it can be very serious for both mother and child. Also discussed in our blog.

Life insurance companies know that untreated hyperparathyroidism is associated with a decrease in life expectancy and can use the diagnosis of hyperparathyroidism to deny you coverage. Airplane pilots are grounded if they have high calcium--their license is suspended. So why is your doctor "watching" your high calcium?

MEN Syndromes are a rare familial disorder where three endocrine glands develop tumors, including the parathyroid glands. This is also very rare... so don't waste too much time reading about this.

Read the stories of over 1000 patients with hyperparathyroidism; what they have to say about their disease and how it affected their lives. Read about their experience coming to the Norman Parathyroid Center to have their mini-parathyroid surgery.

Color our Cartoon.  One of our patients made a cartoon showing the symptoms of hyperparathyroidism. 

See our Map of where our patients come from... you will find that we have operated on somebody that lives down the street from you. People love the map!

Get the Calcium-Pro app that our experts developed. Monitor your calcium, PTH, vitamin D, and osteoporosis and diagnose hyperparathyroidism. Download for Apple iPhone/iPad, or Android phones/tablets.