Renal calcifications and primary hyperparathyroidism in a tertiary care hospital center of North Africa: a single-center experience

Abstract

Background and aims: Primary hyperparathyroidism (PHPT) is a common endocrine disorder; one of its common complications is renal calcifications. Our study aimed to determine the prevalence of renal calcifications (nephrolithiasis and nephrocalcinosis) in patients with primary hyperparathyroidism, to elucidate potential demographic, biochemical, radiological, and histological differences between patients with and without renal calcifications, and to assess potential risk factors associated with its occurrence.

Methods: This was a retrospective, single-center, descriptive, and analytical study involving 62 patients with primary hyperparathyroidism (PHPT). Participants were assessed through serum and urinary parameters, kidney-urinary tract ultrasonography, and abdominal computed tomography (CT) scans to evaluate the presence or absence of renal calcifications.

Results: We found 30 patients (48.4%) with renal calcifications, all of them nephrolithiasis, and only 2 cases (6.7%) had nephrocalcinosis associated with nephrolithiasis; and they were all detected by abdominal CT scan. Compared to patients without renal calcifications, those who had renal calcifications had a significantly higher prevalence of diabetes, BMI, waist circumference, PTH 1- 84, alkaline phosphatase, and lower 25-hydroxy vitamin D (25-(OH)-D). No significant difference was found between the two groups in other studied parameters. Higher BMI and lower 25-(OH)-D were potential risk factors for renal calcifications in multivariate regression analysis.

Conclusion: The combination of PHPT and renal calcifications is still common and often asymptomatic.