Possibly Another Case of......

[eytonxav]

T-Als thread regarding Lena made me aware of this and am suspecting I could have hyperparathyoid disease, but will need to get some further testing done.

While my PCP hasn't even raised a question over these calcium levels in my past blood tests, they certainly warrant further investigation:

12/10 - 10.4
3/11 - 10.1
7/11 - 10.3
1/12 - 10.5

Need to get PTH and possibly ionized calcium levels tested to know for sure. It amazes me that the PCP didn't bat an eye over my calcium levels. Nevertheless, he told me he was leaving the practice at my last visit so I will have a new Dr going forward, so we'll see how the new Dr reacts when I call requesting additional testing. This condition can become quite serious if left untreated.

www.parathyroid.com

 

[braumeister]

I'm curious about your post. My blood test results say that the normal range is 8.6 to 10.2, and yours are only a little outside that range.

The website you linked to frankly sounds suspect to me, and seems to be a case of scaremongering.

The first sentence on the home page is

Parathyroid.com is the world's leading authority on parathyroid glands and parathyroid disease.

which may or may not be true, but is odd.

Just a little further down, I see this sentence:

If you are reading Parathyroid.com then you probably have a parathyroid tumor that needs to be removed.

Really?
I don't mean to be hypercritical, but IMHO that's just not a proper medical attitude.

 

[TromboneAl]

All you need, in order to know if you have a problem, is your PTH level. If the calcium is high and the PTH is high, then one of your parathyroid glands has gone wacko. If your calcium is high, then the parathyroids should not be putting out any PTH. Remember, PTH pulls calcium out of the bones, so if there's too much in the blood already, there shouldn't be any PTH around.

Braumeister, I agree that the web site sounds a little suspect, but I've read and digested almost everything there, and I think it is spot on and reliable. Yes, they are advertising for their services, but they are reputable. Many PCPs are not up to speed on this stuff.

The center related to that site is indeed that top place in the world, and they do an amazing number of parathyroidectomies per day.

It's too early to worry, DFW, and even if you have this, it's not a super big deal. I can give you more info here or in PMs.

 

[Nords]

While my PCP hasn't even raised a question over these calcium levels in my past blood tests, they certainly warrant further investigation:
12/10 - 10.4
3/11 - 10.1
7/11 - 10.3
1/12 - 10.5

Are you going to make us research the website to figure out the context for these numbers, or can you just tell us the specs?

 

[ERD50]

I'm curious about your post.
Just a little further down, I see this sentence:

If you are reading Parathyroid.com then you probably have a parathyroid tumor that needs to be removed.

Geez, I'm glad I didn't click on the link. Sounds worse than most malware, virus, Trojan Horse thingees.

I hope that just reading some of the information posted here didn't give me a tumor that doesn't need to be removed.

Isn't posting links that give you tumors against some sort of Code of Conduct rules on the forum? If not, it oughta be! Mods!

-ERD50

 

[eytonxav]

All you need, in order to know if you have a problem, is your PTH level. If the calcium is high and the PTH is high, then one of your parathyroid glands has gone wacko. If your calcium is high, then the parathyroids should not be putting out any PTH. Remember, PTH pulls calcium out of the bones, so if there's too much in the blood already, there shouldn't be any PTH around.

Braumeister, I agree that the web site sounds a little suspect, but I've read and digested almost everything there, and I think it is spot on and reliable. Yes, they are advertising for their services, but they are reputable. Many PCPs are not up to speed on this stuff.

The center related to that site is indeed that top place in the world, and they do an amazing number of parathyroidectomies per day.

It's too early to worry, DFW, and even if you have this, it's not a super big deal. I can give you more info here or in PMs.

Although initially skeptical, I came to same conclusion as T-Al regarding the website after reading through it thoroughly and noting all the references provided. This is not that common a problem and most PCPs do not have a good understanding.

Al, I'm not worried, but definitely will get my PTH and possibly ionized calcium checked. I appreciate your offer for more info and that you even posted info on this in the first place.

Are you going to make us research the website to figure out the context for these numbers, or can you just tell us the specs?

Nords, generally a blood calcium level above 10.2 is considered abnormal, and often times high normals may even be a problem, but as T-AL explained you also need to know what your numbers are with respect to your PTH level, which at this point I do not. High calcium in the blood can be indicative of a few serious things, cancer or a parathyroid tumor, with the parathyroid tumor only becoming serious if you do not have the tumor removed.

 

[TromboneAl]

And here's the silver lining, if you do have hyperparathyroidism, and you have the operation, there's a good chance that your quality of life will improve. Most people say that many things that they had assumed to be related to getting older got better after the operation. A friend who had had the operation said that soon after it "a fog lifted."

Lena says it wasn't so dramatic for her, but that she feels better than before. More important, however, the frequent headaches that she had are almost completely gone. She could never drink wine without getting a headache, but now she can.

 

[eytonxav]

As for me, I do feel old from the perspective that my memory seems to be getting worse and I easily fall asleep on the couch watching TV after 8:30 PM. The other symptoms that resonated with me of late is that I have noticed increased stomach acid and my blood pressure has gone up, however, I did gain about 10-12 lbs since thanksgiving so it might be attributed to that. Further, I've been eating a lot cheese which is high in calcium, so I suppose that could elevate my calcium levels some. I'll try to get the Dr soon and find out for sure, but if it hadn't been for your original post on this subject, this wouldn't even have been on my radar screen.

 

[Nords]

Nords, generally a blood calcium level above 10.2 is considered abnormal, and often times high normals may even be a problem, but as T-AL explained you also need to know what your numbers are with respect to your PTH level, which at this point I do not. High calcium in the blood can be indicative of a few serious things, cancer or a parathyroid tumor, with the parathyroid tumor only becoming serious if you do not have the tumor removed.

Ah, good, thanks.

I'm in favor of anything that'll help me feel "less old", especially if it helps me avoid exercising more or eating less.