The Different Ways To Treat Hypercalcemia

Hypercalcemia is a medical condition with many underlying causes. The main thing all individuals with hypercalcemia have is an excessive amount of calcium in the blood. The excessive amounts of calcium in the blood can be very problematic. It can upset the normal balance of electrolytes throughout the body, causing excessive thirst, extreme urination, nausea, and fatigue. High levels of calcium can also be quite damaging because they can cause kidney stones, easily broken bones, and mental confusion to develop. If you have hypercalcemia, there may be a few different treatment options depending on the cause of this health problem and the severity of your condition.

Surgery To Treat Hyperparathyroidism

The majority of hypercalcemia cases are caused by hyperparathyroidism, which occurs when the parathyroid glands begin to produce too much of the parathyroid hormone responsible for regulating calcium levels in the bloodstream. If you have overactive parathyroid glands, one very effective option for treatment is surgery. This surgical procedure is called a parathyroidectomy and involves removing one or more of the four parathyroid glands.

The process is very safe and simple. Doctors perform it on patients while they are under general anesthesia at the hospital, and patients can normally go back home the same day. The incisions are typically a few inches long, though new techniques are resulting in even smaller surgical sites. If you had hyperparathyroidism and leave behind some of the parathyroid glands after the surgery, the reduced number of glands will be enough to provide your body with proper levels of parathyroid hormone.

Watch And Wait

Doctors may recommend a watch and wait treatment method for patients with mild cases of hypercalcemia. As this name implies, the treatment for this sort of case is just to wait and see what happens while carefully monitoring the patient's condition. Keep in mind this sort of treatment is not the same thing as doing nothing. Patients still need to get regular doctor's visits to test the amount of calcium in their blood. Calcium levels can sharply rise over a short period, which is why monitoring is necessary.

Doctors might also recommend doing some further medical testing to see what is causing the patient's hypercalcemia to develop during this period as well. Patients will also require tests to see how the kidneys are functioning because even slightly increased calcium levels can cause problems. This sort of treatment is typically only advisable for a short time, however. It is common for calcium levels to go back down on their own, but if this does not happen, more drastic treatment may be required.

Dialysis

The kidneys are typically responsible for filtering the extra calcium from the blood, but when they get damaged, calcium levels greatly build up. In these circumstances, patients might need a medical treatment that involves using a machine to filter out the extra calcium from the blood. It is normally only a treatment used if the kidneys are not functioning and the doctor cannot treat whatever underlying problem is causing hypercalcemia. Dialysis will be performed at a center typically, though it is possible to schedule in-home usage of the machine.

When undergoing dialysis, patients will be attached to the machine with a tube similar to the ones used for IVs. Blood will then circulate through the machine, where calcium is removed, and enter back into the patient's body. It typically takes three to four hours for the machine to thoroughly clean your blood. Most patients who have severe enough kidney damage to require dialysis will need treatment roughly three times per week.

Changes In Diet And Fluid Intake

Not all causes of hypercalcemia are dangerous things like cancer or hyperparathyroidism. What you eat and drink can end up affecting calcium levels. The third most common cause of hypercalcemia is simply due to excessive doses of calcium carbonate. Patients may be able to treat their hypercalcemia simply by eating less calcium. Try to minimize calcium intake in foods and supplements.

Dehydration can also cause hypercalcemia because when you have lower amounts of fluid in your blood, calcium and other minerals will become more concentrated. Be sure to drink at least eight cups of water each day. Even if you do have another underlying condition causing your hypercalcemia, it is still a good idea to make changes in your diet and fluid intake. Avoiding dehydration and excessive calcium intake can help to keep your condition from getting worse.

Underlying Condition Treatment

An essential part of managing hypercalcemia is the treatment of its underlying condition. Something going wrong in the body causes almost all cases of hypercalcemia. Calcium levels are typically monitored by the kidneys, the parathyroid glands, and vitamin D intake. If something goes wrong with one of these things, an individual can end up with excessive calcium. The most common issue is an overactive parathyroid gland resulting in hyperparathyroidism. Some individuals with kidney damage may end up with hypercalcemia because their kidneys cannot properly filter out calcium.

Another thing that may cause hypercalcemia is lung diseases or lung cancer. These conditions can cause increased levels of vitamin D, which raise calcium levels as well. If possible, treating the underlying condition is always important. Once it is treated, calcium levels will often slowly return to normal.