ABSTRACT
Parathyroid hormone (PTH), osteocalcin and alkaline phosphatase (AP) were investigated before and after parathyroidectomy in 12 patients receiving hemodialysis. Early post-parathyroidectomy, PTH decreased (p less than 0.001), AP increased (p less than 0.05), but osteocalcin remained unchanged. At 3 months, osteocalcin and AP declined. A negative correlation was observed between aluminum staining and post-parathyroidectomy osteocalcin. In conclusion, early post-parathyroidectomy, osteocalcin and AP reflect persistent osteoblastic activity, which declined after 3 months. In patients receiving hemodialysis both variables may represent different aspects of osteoblastic activity and osteocalcin allows mixed uremic osteodystrophy after parathyroidectomy.