A Case of Calcitonin Secreting Pheochromocytoma / 대한내분비학회지

Pheochromocytoma is a catecholamine producing turnor and raise with less than 0.1% of hypertensive patients. It is developed, most commonly, in sporadic pheochromocytoma or multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2. Therefore, when hypercalcitoninemia is found in a patient with pheochromocytoma, the possibility of multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2 or the ectopic secretion of calcitonin must be considered. Recently we experienced a 45 year old male patient with sporadic pheochrornocytoma. He also had hypercalcitoninemia and normocalcemia. After the removal of pheochromocytoma, serum calcitnnin level returned to normal. Secretion of calcitonin was confirmed by immunohisto- chemical stain.

Childhood infection-associated hypocalcemia

The causes of hypocalcemia in patients suffering from severe infection including sepsis are largely uncertain. So we measured serum albumin, total protein, cholesterol, PTH, and calcitonin of the infection-associated hypocalcemic children and compared with those of normocalcemic children suffering from tsutsugamushi disease. All had normal renal functions and had been admitted to the department of pediatrics of Gyeongsang National University Hospital. Hypocalcemic patients were hypoalbuminemic. Serum total calcium was inappropriately more decreased compared to the decreased amount of serum albumin in the hypocalcemic group. We also observed more frequent incidence of hypocholesterolemia (<100mg/dL) in this group. And serum PTH was appropriately elevated in the hypocalcemic patients. Serum calcitonin was elevated in both groups, but 6 times higher in the hypocalcemic group than in the normocalcemic one. Serum total calcium was positively correlated with serum albumin and negatively correlated with serum PTH and calcitonin.