Background: Systematic study of outcomes of initial surgery for primary hyperparathyroidism (PHPT) has been limited by selection and self-reporting biases. To avoid these biases, we evaluated parathyroidectomy (PTx) outcomes within an integrated health care system encompassing 3.25 million enrollees.
Methods: All patients undergoing PTx for PHPT from 1995 to 2010 were studied. Persistent and recurrent disease were defined by a serum calcium level >10.5 mg/dL before or after 6 months postoperatively, respectively. The effect of demographic, clinical, and hospital volume-related variables was assessed by the use of multivariate logistic regression.
Results: A total of 1,190 initial operations for PHPT were performed at 14 hospitals. Follow-up calcium levels were available in 97% of subjects. The overall success rate was 92%, and 5% of patients developed recurrent disease. Age ≥ 70 years was predictive of persistent disease (odds ratio 1.80, P < .05). High-volume hospital (>100 cases) predicted against persistent disease (odds ratio 0.42, P < .05) and carried 96% success rate. Negative or equivocal sestamibi scan was associated with a lower success rate (success rate 89% vs 95% for positive scan, P < .05). Reoperation was performed in 12% of patients with persistent or recurrent PHPT.
Conclusion: The success rate of PTx is influenced by patient age, hospital volume, and sestamibi scan result. Surgical outcomes may be optimized by designating high-volume centers in the community setting.
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