Intraoperative secretion of intact parathyroid hormone and amino-terminal parathyroid hormone fragments from normal parathyroid glands associated with solitary parathyroid adenoma.

The nonadenomatous parathyroid glands associated with parathyroid adenoma in patients with primary hyperparathyroidism (pHPT) are assumed to exhibit suppressed secretion of parathyroid hormone (PTH). Because the function of these glands is of clinical importance for calcium homeostasis after surgery for pHPT, we studied the decrease of serum levels associated with intact PTH (i-PTH) and amino-terminal PTH (N-PTH) after excision of a parathyroid adenoma. Blood samples were obtained from the cubital vein and the inferior thyroid vein in six patients with pHPT. The results show that the levels of both i-PTH and N-PTH decreased after removal of the parathyroid adenoma (p < 0.05 for both). Because the reduction was more pronounced for i-PTH than for N-PTH, the N/i ratio increased from 0.54 +/- 0.33 to 3.76 +/- 1.62 (p < 0.05). Furthermore, the levels of i-PTH and N-PTH were higher centrally than peripherally both before and after adenoma excision (p < 0.05). The results therefore suggest that the secretion of i-PTH and N-PTH in the remaining normal-size parathyroid glands is not completely suppressed. Furthermore, in these parathyroid glands the secretion of amino-terminal PTH fragments is relatively predominant when compared to the release of the intact PTH. The findings underscore the importance of the N-terminal PTH fragment for maintaining calcium homeostasis during the early postoperative period after surgery for pHPT and may explain the rarity of prolonged hypocalcemia after parathyroidectomy.