Hypoparathyroidism (hypoPT) causes reduced serum calcium levels that manifest in the individual as severe muscular cramps. In addition, those experiencing hypoPT exhibit a complex mixture of physical and neurocognitive symptoms dramatically reducing health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Supplementation with calcium and vitamin D supplementation is common, as is parathyroid hormone (PTH) analogue treatment. However, the long term success of these approaches upon the measure of HRQoL remains unclear.

Kontogeorgos et al. examined medical records from 203 patients between 2007 and 2020, to better understand how QoL is affected by current hypoPT treatment regimens. From these data, they observed that QoL scores were significantly lower in patients with hypoPT compared with those without the condition. Despite this, there was only a moderate increase in co-morbidities and no overall increase in mortality.

This work indicates that both clinicians and patient groups would benefit from greater stratification to identify those (if any) who stand to gain the greatest benefit from PTH analogues.

Read the full article in Endocrine Connections 11 e210379