Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 4, 2026
Generation of Hypoparathyroid Rats via Carbon-Nanoparticle-Assisted Parathyroidectomy
Published on: July 14, 2023
Effect on bone density of postoperative calcium and vitamin-D supplementation in patients with primary
Erik Nordenström1, Johan Westerdahl, Anders Bergenfelz
1Department of Surgery, Lund University Hospital, 221-85, Lund, Sweden. erik.nordenstrom@skane.se
Background:
Primary hyperparathyroidism (pHPT) is associated with decreased bone density and increased fracture risk. A significant number of pHPT patients have low calcium intake and suffer from vitamin deficiency. Thus, we adopted a policy of postoperative supplements with calcium and vitamin D after parathyroid surgery. In this study, we investigated if this policy enhanced the postoperative increase in bone density.
Patients/Methods:
Forty-two consecutive patients (83% female) were studied. The first 21 patients received no supplements, whereas the following 21 patients received 1,000 g calcium and 800 IU hydroxy D: -vitamin daily (Ca-D group) for 1 year postoperatively. The patients were monitored with bone density and biochemistry pre- and at 1 year postoperatively.
Results:
Preoperatively, the patients without vitamin D supplementation (non-Ca-D group) did neither differ in biochemistry, clinical features, nor in bone density from patients in Ca-D group. Postoperatively, there was a tendency that patients in Ca-D group increased their bone density, at all sites measured, in a greater extent than patients that did not receive calcium and vitamin D supplementation.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, based on our results, it is difficult to give a recommendation of vitamin D supplementation in routine use following surgery for primary hyperparathyroidism. Based on the present data, a calculation of sample size for a future randomized controlled trial is presented.
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