The use of ultrasound in the localisation of parathyroid glands in parathyroid disorders.
Eleven patients with clinical and biochemical evidence of primary hyperparathyroidism were studied with ultrasonography. In nine patients who were treated surgically, four had predictive ultrasound scans (44% consistency). There was no correlation between the transverse diameters of the glands, as measured from the scans, and either the pathologist's measurements or the mean protein-corrected serum calcium and parathormone (PTH) levels. The investigation failed to identify the only patient with parathyroid hyperplasia. The difficulties encountered and the reasons for the high number of both false positive and false negative scans are discussed. Five patients with parathyroid disorders associated with hyperplasia were also studied and in four patients the enlarged glands were identified. A variation in size between the glands in each patient was noted. No correlation between the total of the transverse diameters and either the protein-corrected serum calcium or PTH levels was found. Reduction in size of the glands in one patient occurred over a 12-month period on treatment and a role for ultrasonography in the follow-up of patients with secondary hyperparathyroidism is discussed.
D000236:Adenoma / Q000175:diagnosis; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003951:Diagnostic Errors; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006961:Hyperparathyroidism / Q000175:diagnosis*; D006965:Hyperplasia / Q000175:diagnosis; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010280:Parathyroid Glands / Q000473:pathology; D010282:Parathyroid Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis; D014463:Ultrasonography