PurposeHypocalcemia is the most common complication after total thyroidectomy. The purpose of this study was to determine whether measurement of intact parathyroid hormone (i-PTH) level in thyroidectomy patients could predict hypocalcemia.Materials and MethodsWe performed a prospective study of patients undergoing total thyroidectomy. Serum concentration of i-PTH, total calcium (Ca), ionized calcium (Ca2+), phosphate (P), magnesium (Mg), and albumin were measured preoperatively and at 0 hour, 6 hours, 12 hours, 24 hours, 48 hours, and 72 hours postoperatively.Results108 patients were recruited to the study. A total of 50 patients (46%) experienced hypocalcemia. The serum i-PTH concentration was linearly related to the time of measurement, while concentrations of P, Mg, albumin, Ca, and Ca2+ were not. We compared odds ratios, and found that the concentration of i-PTH at 6 hours post operation was the most closely related to the occurrence of hypocalcemic symptom. On ROC analysis using i-PTH level at 6 hours, an i-PTH level of 10.6 mg/dL was found to maximize both sensitivity and specificity at the same time point.ConclusionWe found that i-PTH was a predictor of hypocalcemia, and that the earliest predictor of hypocalcemic symptoms was an i-PTH concentration lower than 10.6 mg/dL obtained 6 hours after total thyroidectomy.

The purpose of this study was to analyze the prevalence of vocal nodules and to identify factors related with an increased risk for vocal nodules.This study was conducted using data from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2008 to 2011. The subjects consisted of 19,636 men and women aged ≥19 years. Related factors such as age, marital status, incomes, and education level were assessed in individual interviews, and health-related behaviors including smoking, alcohol, and activity were assessed with self-administered questionnaires. Also, examination survey such as laryngoscopy examination, basic physical examination, and blood sampling was conducted.The prevalence of vocal nodules was 1.31% (n = 258). Among variable factors, age, education level, and voice disorder were related with the presence of vocal nodules (P < 0.05). Other factors including sex, alcohol, smoking, physical activities, hypertension, obesity, waist circumference and metabolic syndrome, hypercholesterolemia, serum calcium, and vitamin D did not show any meaningful relationship with the presence of vocal nodules.This result may help reduce the incidence of vocal nodules and offer proper management for patients with vocal nodules, and may also facilitate efficient allocation of public health resources.

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