Hipopara-Red, Real Life Experience in 322 Patients With Hypoparathyroidism

CONTEXT: Hypoparathyroidism is a rare disease and, as such, its natural history, long-term complications, and correct clinical management remain unclear. OBJECTIVE: To describe the natural history and clinical characteristics of the disease. DESIGN AND SETTING: To present a retrospective observational analysis from 7 specialized centers in Buenos Aires, Argentina. PATIENTS: Chronic hypoparathyroid patients followed-up between 1985 and December 2018. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Data on demographics, etiology, clinical complications, biochemical parameters, dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) values, and treatment doses were collected. RESULTS: A total of 322 subjects with chronic hypoparathyroidism were included; 85.7% were female, the mean age was 55.2 ± 16.8 years, and the mean age at diagnosis was 43.8 ± 16.8 years. Prevalence of surgical hypoparathyroidism was 90.7%, with the most common causes being thyroid carcinoma and benign thyroid disease. A history of hypocalcemia requiring hospitalization was present in 25.7% of the whole group and in 4.3% of patients who had a history of seizures. Overall, 40.9% of our patients had reported at least 1 neuromuscular symptom. Renal insufficiency was present in 22.4% of our patients and was significantly associated with age (P < 0.0001). Hyperphosphatemia was present in 42% of patients. A history of severe hypocalcemia, paresthesias, tetany, ganglia calcifications, seizures, and cataracts was significantly higher in nonsurgical patients. CONCLUSION: Although these patients were followed-up by experienced physicians, clinical management was heterogeneous and probably insufficient to assess all the potential complications of this chronic disease. Almost 70% of the study’s group of patients met the experts’ indications for considering the use of rhPTH 1–84. Being aware of this fact is the 1(st) step in improving our medical management of this disease in the future.