What is hyperparathyroidism?

      The parathyroid glands are one of the essential and vital organs of the body, although the vast majority of people are not aware of their existence. Most people have four parathyroid glands, located behind the thyroid gland, but in a few cases, the thyroid gland is ectopic to various different parts of the neck or chest. The function of the parathyroid glands is to regulate the balance of blood calcium throughout the body, primarily by secreting parathyroid hormone, which promotes calcium absorption in the kidneys and intestines, as well as promoting bone destruction, with the overall effect of elevating blood calcium levels. Hyperparathyroidism is a clinical syndrome caused by the abnormal overproduction of parathyroid hormone by the parathyroid glands. Excessive calcium levels in the blood will lead to a series of problems such as bone decalcification, kidney stones and vascular sclerosis, whose main manifestations are pain in several joints throughout the body, osteoporosis, fractures, bone deformities, urinary stones, kidney damage or kidney failure, etc. In severe cases, systemic systemic failure or cardiac arrhythmia may occur. In severe cases, systemic failure or cardiac arrhythmias may occur. During the diagnostic process, the main laboratory tests are serum parathyroid hormone (PTH) and total calcium, in addition to other more extensive blood tests that are needed for classification and differential diagnosis. Prior to surgery, ultrasound and nuclear medicine examinations are also required to localize the lesion. Performing accurate preoperative localization is one of the difficult issues in this type of disease.