Outcomes of parathyroidectomy versus calcimimetics for secondary hyperparathyroidism and kidney transplantation: a propensity-matched analysis.

PURPOSE: Calcimimetics are currently indicated for severe secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPT). However, the role of parathyroidectomy (PTX) for these patients is still under debate, and its impact on subsequent kidney transplantation (KTX) is unclear. In this study, we compare the outcomes of kidney transplantation after PTX or medical treatment. METHODS: Patients who underwent KTX and had SHPT were analyzed retrospectively. Two groups were selected (patients who had either PTX or calcimimetics prior to KTX) using a propensity score for sex, age, donor type, and parathyroid hormone levels (PTH) during dialysis. The primary outcome was graft failure, and secondary outcomes were surgical KTX complications, survival, serum PTH, serum calcium, and serum phosphate levels post-KTX. RESULTS: Matching succeeded for 92 patients. After PTX, PTH was significantly lower on the day of KTX as well as at 1 and 3 years post-KTX (14.00 pmol/L (3.80-34.00) vs. 71.30 pmol/L (30.70-108.30), p < 0.01, 10.10 pmol/L (2.00-21.00) vs. 32.35 pmol/L (21.58-51.76), p < 0.01 and 13.00 pmol/L (6.00-16.60) vs. 19.25 pmol/L (13.03-31.88), p = 0.027, respectively). No significant differences in post-KTX calcium and phosphate levels were noted between groups. Severe KTX complications were more common in the calcimimetics group (56.5% vs. 30.4%, p = 0.047). There were no differences in 10-year graft failure and overall survival. CONCLUSION: PTX resulted in lower PTH after KTX in comparison to patients who received calcimimetics. Severe complications were more common after calcimimetics, but graft failure and overall survival were similar.

Timing of Parathyroidectomy Does Not Influence Renal Function After Kidney Transplantation.

BACKGROUND: Parathyroidectomy (PTx) is the treatment of choice for end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients with therapy-resistant hyperparathyroidism (HPT). The optimal timing of PTx for ESRD-related HPT-before or after kidney transplantation (KTx)-is subject of debate. METHODS: Patients with ESRD-related HPT who underwent both PTx and KTx between 1994 and 2015 were included in a multicenter retrospective study in four university hospitals. Two groups were formed according to treatment sequence: PTx before KTx (PTxKTx) and PTx after KTx (KTxPTx). Primary endpoint was renal function (eGFR, CKD-EPI) between both groups at several time points post-transplantation. Correlation between the timing of PTx and KTx and the course of eGFR was assessed using generalized estimating equations (GEE). RESULTS: The PTxKTx group consisted of 102 (55.1%) and the KTxPTx group of 83 (44.9%) patients. Recipient age, donor type, PTx type, and pre-KTx PTH levels were significantly different between groups. At 5 years after transplantation, eGFR was similar in the PTxKTx group (eGFR 44.5 ± 4.0 ml/min/1.73 m2) and KTxPTx group (40.0 ± 6.4 ml/min/1.73 m2, p = 0.43). The unadjusted GEE model showed that timing of PTx was not correlated with graft function over time (mean difference -1.0 ml/min/1.73 m2, 95% confidence interval -8.4 to 6.4, p = 0.79). Adjustment for potential confounders including recipient age and sex, various donor characteristics, PTx type, and PTH levels did not materially influence the results. CONCLUSIONS: In this multicenter cohort study, timing of PTx before or after KTx does not independently impact graft function over time.

Effect of parathyroidectomy and cinacalcet on quality of life in patients with end-stage renal disease-related hyperparathyroidism: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) have a decreased quality of life (QoL), which is attributable in part to ESRD-related hyperparathyroidism (HPT). Both cinacalcet and parathyroidectomy (PTx) are treatments for advanced HPT, but their effects on QoL are unclear. We performed a systematic review to evaluate the impact of cinacalcet and PTx on QoL. METHODS: A systematic literature search was performed using PubMed and EMBASE databases to identify relevant articles. The search was based on the following keywords: 'parathyroidectomy' or 'cinacalcet', 'secondary hyperparathyroidism' or 'renal hyperparathyroidism' combined with 'quality of life' or 'SF-36' or 'symptomatology'. Only studies reporting on QoL at baseline and during follow-up were included. QoL scores were extracted from the selected manuscripts and weighted means were calculated. Due to a lack of available data on QoL improvement in patients using cinacalcet, a meta-analysis could not be performed. RESULTS: In all, eight articles reached our inclusion criteria. Of this, five articles reported the effect of PTx on QoL. All PTx studies were observational and non-controlled. The physical component scores of the 36-item Medical Outcomes Study Short-Form Health Survey increased significantly with a weighted mean of 35.5% (P < 0.05). Mental component scores increased with 13.7% (P < 0.05). Parathyroidectomy assessment of symptom scores improved from 561 preoperatively to 302 postoperatively (-259 points; -46.2%). Visual analogue scale scores decreased significantly for skin itching (46.6%), joint pain (30.4%) and muscle weakness (28.7%) (P < 0.05). Three studies on the effect of cinacalcet on QoL were included, including one randomized controlled trial. None of these studies showed significant improvement of physical component and mental component scores. CONCLUSIONS: PTx improved QoL in patients treated for ESRD-related HPT, whereas cinacalcet did not. The difference in impact between PTx and cinacalcet on QoL has not been compared directly.

Postoperative parathyroid hormone levels as a predictor for persistent hypoparathyroidism.

OBJECTIVE: Hypoparathyroidism is a common complication after thyroidectomy. It is not yet possible to predict in which patients hypoparathyroidism will persist. We aim to determine whether a decrease in PTH levels, measured at the first postoperative day, can identify patients with a high risk for persistent hypoparathyroidism one year after thyroidectomy. DESIGN: Prospective multi-center cohort study. METHODS: Patients undergoing total or completion thyroidectomy were included. We measured PTH levels preoperatively and on the first postoperative day. Primary outcome is the proportion of patients with persistent hypoparathyroidism, defined as the need for calcium supplementation one year after surgery. RESULTS: We included 110 patients of which 81 were used for analysis of the primary outcome. At discharge 72.8% of patients were treated with calcium supplementation. Persistent hypoparathyroidism was present in 14 patients (17.3%) at one-year follow-up, all of them had a decrease in PTH >70% at the first postoperative day. These 14 were 43.8% of the 32 patients who had such a decrease. In the group of 49 patients (59.8%) without a PTH >70% decrease, none had persistent hypoparathyroidism one year after surgery (P-value <0.001). A decrease of >70% in PTH levels had a sensitivity of 100.0% (95% CI: 85.8-100.0%), a specificity of 73.1% (95% CI: 62.5-83.7%) and an area under the curve of 0.87 (95% CI: 0.79-0.94) to predict the risk for persistent hypoparathyroidism. CONCLUSION: In our study a decrease in PTH levels of >70% after total or completion thyroidectomy is a reliable predictor for persistent hypoparathyroidism, and this should be confirmed in larger cohorts.

Macrocytosis as a potential parameter associated with survival after tyrosine kinase inhibitor treatment.

AIM OF THE STUDY: As a rise in mean corpuscular volume (MCV) of the erythrocyte is frequently seen during treatment with imatinib and sunitinib, we investigated whether macrocytosis (MCV > 100 fl) also occurs as a class effect in other tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) and whether occurrence of macrocytosis is associated with outcome. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In 533 patients, using 5 TKIs, we investigated if macrocytosis and an increase in MCV were associated with progression-free survival and overall survival (OS) in specific tumour-treatment combinations. RESULTS: Macrocytosis as well as an increase in MCV from baseline of >10 fl (ΔMCV +10 fl), when included as a time-dependent covariate, were associated with improved OS in patients with renal cell cancer (RCC) treated with sunitinib (macrocytosis, hazard ratio [HR] = 0.61, p = 0.031, and ΔMCV +10 fl, HR = 0.58, p = 0.016). CONCLUSION: In sunitinib-treated patients with RCC, the occurrence of macrocytosis, or a substantial increase in MCV levels after start of treatment, could potentially serve as a positive prognostic factor for survival, if validated prospectively.