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[quote=Anonymous]TBH it’s not that much calcium and vitamin D, but if his calcium is high, he should stop. In any case, one should always stop ALL supplements for a couple weeks before blood work as some kinds can throw off blood work.

I had Hyperparathyroidism and parathyroid surgery. The surgery was a fantastic relief for my many Hyperparathyroidism symptoms.

He should have his Calcium, PTH and Vitamin D tested, all from the same blood draw. Do it fasting, first thing in the AM, so what he eats doesn’t affect levels.

Calcium should not be higher than 10 for someone his age, even though the lab results will state a “normal” range above 10.  His PTH should be in the normal range *and* “appropriately normal,” which means inversely related to Calcium.If calcium is in the upper half of normal, PTH should be in the lower half of normal. So, a Calcium of 9.9 (high normal) with a PTH of 60 (high normal), together *aren’t normal* and are likely indicative of disease.  Vitamin D should be above 30 without supplementing.

TBH, even if his blood work is normal, I would do the CA/PTH/D test 3 times  a few weeks apart each time. Calcium can fluctuate, and medications (gastric acid blockers, aromatase inhibitors and other meds) can alter calcium and vitamin D levels. And, to make things trickier, there are normo-calcemic and normo+hormonal variants of primary Hyperparathyroidism. Plus, one can have secondary Hyperparathyroidism, which is due to inadequate intake or absorption of either vitamin D or calcium. There is a very good Facebook group called “Hyperparathyroidism Support and Information” with a lot of guides about the illness, doctor recommendations, etc. Also, the website of the highest volume parathyroidectomy practice in the country - Norman Parathyroid Center - has a website with good explanations about the illness - parathyroid.com, and they have an app that you can input lab data.

Many endocrinologists aren’t actually knowledgeable about Hyperparathyroidism. I had to beg my first endo to listen to my complaints and pay attention to a calcium of 10, even she did not immediately order a Calcium, PTH and Vitamin D panel.  My second endo was even worse - kept telling me that I didn’t have Hyperparathyroidism even though I had an ultrasound with an identified parathyroid adenoma h the cause of Hyperparathyroidism). She also refused to refer me to a surgeon because she said that I couldn’t have surgery unless I had a calcium over 11, osteoporosis or kidney stones.   This is a common misreading of Endocrine Association guidelines.

I self-referred to a high volume endocrine surgeon who did a minimally invasive parathyroidectomy with intraoperative PTH monitoring.  If your dad is going to consider surgery, it should only be with someone who is high volume - which is 50+ a year.

Surgery is the only cure for Hyperparathyroidism, and although it is done on patients your dad’s age, one obviously has to weigh pros & cons of treatment vs. no treatment at that age.

Having said that, getting diagnosed and having a parathyroidectomy is the single best health thing I’ve done for myself.  I was sick for probably at least a decade - in that classic way that is non-specific enough to allow doctors to dismiss you. [/quote]

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