Hypercalcemia

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Endocrine glands

Treatment is directed at the cause of hypercalcemia whenever possible. In more severe cases of primary hyperparathyroidism, surgery may be needed to remove the abnormal parathyroid gland and cure the hypercalcemia.

However, if your hypercalcemia is mild and caused by primary hyperparathyroidism, your health care provider will most likely recommend that you not have surgery, but will monitor your condition closely over time.

Severe hypercalcemia that causes symptoms and requires a hospital stay is treated with the following:

• Calcitonin
• Dialysis
• Diuretic medication, such as furosemide
• Drugs that stop bone breakdown and absorption by the body, such as pamidronate or etidronate (bisphosphonates)
• Fluids through a vein (intravenous fluids)
• Glucocorticoids (steroids)

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How well you do depends on the cause of hypercalcemia. Patients with mild hyperparathyroidism or hypercalcemia with a treatable cause do well and do not have complications.

Patients with hypercalcemia due to conditions such as cancer or granulomatous disease may not do well, but this is usually due to the disease itself, rather than the hypercalcemia.

Gastrointestinal

• Pancreatitis
• Peptic ulcer disease

Kidney

• Calcium deposits in the kidney (nephrocalcinosis)
• Dehydration
• High blood pressure
• Kidney failure
• Kidney stones

Psychological

• Depression
• Difficulty concentrating or thinking

Skeletal

• Bone cysts
• Fractures
• Osteoporosis

The complications of long-term hypercalcemia are uncommon today.

Contact your physician or health care provider if you have:

• Family history of hypercalcemia
• Family history of hyperparathyroidism
• Symptoms of hypercalcemia

Review Date: 01/21/2010
Reviewed By: Robert Cooper, MD, Endocrinology Specialist and Chief of Medicine, Holyoke Medical Center, Assistant Professor of Medicine, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David C. Dugdale, III, MD, Professor of Medicine, Division of General Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine; and David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org).