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Hypercalcemia from any cause can result in fatigue, depression, mental confusion, anorexia, nausea, constipation, renal tubular defects, polyuria, a short QT interval, and arrhythmias. CNS and GI symptoms can occur at levels of serum calcium >2.9 mmol/L (>11.5 mg/dL), and nephrocalcinosis and impairment of renal function occur when serum calcium is >3.2 mmol/L (>13 mg/dL). Severe hypercalcemia, usually defined as >3.7 mmol/L (>15 mg/dL), can be a medical emergency, leading to coma and cardiac arrest.
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The regulation of the calcium homeostasis is depicted in Fig. 176-1. The causes of hypercalcemia are listed in Table 176-1. Hyperparathyroidism and malignancy account for >90% of cases.
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Primary hyperparathyroidism is a generalized disorder of bone metabolism due to increased secretion of parathyroid hormone (PTH) by an adenoma (80%) or rarely a carcinoma in a single gland, or by parathyroid hyperplasia (15%). Familial hyperparathyroidism may be part of multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 (MEN 1), which also includes pituitary and pancreatic islet tumors, or of MEN 2A, in which hyperparathyroidism occurs with pheochromocytoma and medullary carcinoma of the thyroid.
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Hypercalcemia associated with malignancy is often severe and difficult to manage. Mechanisms for this include excess production and release of PTH-related protein (PTHrP) in lung, kidney, and squamous cell carcinoma (humoral hypercalcemia of malignancy); local bone destruction in myeloma and breast carcinoma; activation of lymphocytes leading to release of cytokines in myeloma and lymphoma; or an increased synthesis of 1,25(OH)2D in ...