Postoperative Serum Parathyroid Hormone Levels as a Predictor of Hypocalcemia in Patients Undergoing Total Thyroidectomy.

Postoperative hypocalcemia is a common complication of total thyroidectomy; the onset and severity of post-operative hypocalcemia is unpredictable. Various attempts have been made to identify predictors of hypocalcemia. There has been an increasing interest in serum levels of parathyroid hormone (PTH) as an early predictor of the development of hypocalcemia after total thyroidectomy.