Hypocalcaemia post thyroid surgery

Hi, yes, a very similar thing is happening to me. I had the completion steroid surgery in August and went home the next day  A few days later I was advised to go to A&E as I had cramps and pins and needles in my arms and legs. The bloods taken there showed that my calcium levels had plummeted but were just above the level of being abnormal. I was told to take 2 AdCal calcium chews a day and I've had many blood tests since which show that my calcium level is still much lower than it was before the thyroid surgery.

Last week I found out that a parathyroid gland was found embedded in the thyroid tissue that had been removed during my completion surgery. I understand that that can happen. I wonder if that's happened to you too and it explains why your calcium levels have dropped. The other explanation could be that  your parathyroids were damaged during surgery. I've heard that this can happen and that they can recover normal functioning with time.

Did your surgeon give you any info or indication of what could be happening in your case?

Hi River71 , sorry to hear that you are going through a similar thing but thank you for your reply. All the doctor said at the hospital is that they will retest my calcium levels in a few weeks to see whats going on, I haven't really received any information on how my surgery went apart from 'okay' so I guess I can ask my questions at my 2 week appointment. I take the same AdCal chews but 4 a day which might get a bit annoying once I start back at work etc. At least they are supposedly fruit flavoured! Feeling a tad frustrated about having a surgery complication as I'm sure you are too. 

Hello again, I asked for calcium blood test forms from my GP in the last month so I've been able to keep an eye on my calcium levels as I want to avoid another trip to A&E! 

It's good that you only have a couple of weeks to wait before an appointment. Is that with your surgeon? If so, you could ask him or her if any parathyroid glands were embedded in the removed thyroid or whether your calcium issues are most likely temporary  

 I've got my follow up appointment today with the surgeon and it'll be 6 weeks since my operation so I'll ask him what the plan is going forward and whether I’ll need to take the Tutti Fruity (or Lemon!) AdCal chews for life! 

Like you, I feel frustrated at the complication  I has no idea this could happen.

I'm glad you can keep an eye on your calcium levels! The cramps are no joke - early this morning I woke up with bad cramp in my forearm which I've never experienced before so I'm thinking it was due to my calcium levels, that or bad circulation. I haven't got the appointment details yet but I'll definitely ask about the parathyroid issues. I hope your appointment goes well today and you get some good news, how have you been finding taking the thyroid replacement medication? I think its too soon for me to notice much of a difference yet! I have an appointment today to take out the metal clips from my incision, I'm looking forward to not looking like I'm halfway to a halloween costume!

Sorry it's taken me so long to reply, I've only just seen your last message. For some reason the posts from this forum have started going into my email Spam folder and I just found them. I'll know to check the Spam folder from now on! 

Yes, I've had forearm cramps as well as hand and foot cramps. Really weird! They've tended to happen in the early morning and just after waking up.

I asked the surgeon about this and he seemed a bit puzzled and said that sometimes after a thyroidectomy odd cramps and pains can be felt in the neck and shoulders because of the strain put on those areas during the operation but I've had no neck or shoulder pain at all so my money is still on my cramps and pins and needles being caused by the big drop in calcium.

I don't think my body's got used to the Levothyroxine yet really. I get very sudden lurching drops in energy and I think that brainfog that I have already because of other health issues has got worse too so I wonder if the tablets are contributing to that. How are you coping with the tablets yourself? 

I hope the appointment to take out the clips went OK for you. Was it painful? I didn't have clips just dissolvable glue that turned grey and collected fluff! 

I had hypocalcaemia following my operation July 22 and was on Vit D and Calcium tables for several months, but eventually was able to come off Calcium due to my parathyroid glands kicking back in.  I still take Vit D and although I was told my levels were good I don't go out a lot and was Vit D deficient before my operations, so they agreed to carry on prescribing them for me.  I had regular blood tests to check these level under the instruction of the Hypocalcaemic Clinic at the hospital where I had my op, the tests were carried out at my local surgery and at first were every 7-10 days but reduced as time went on.  Hope your recovery is going well @Ocean23 x

A whole month later, and I am finally replying! I hope you're doing okay and that you're doing a bit better on the levothyroxine. I had my 1 month follow up a few weeks ago, with a blood test and my T4 was "extremely high" (doctor's words) and so I've gone down 25mcg. I too had the highs and lows of energy along with my heart rate being too high all the time. My mood has also been all over the place which I'm sure my family have enjoyed dealing with haha. Have your levothyroxine levels been changed at all?
I'm still taking the fruity tutti or lemon calcium tablets, and I've had one experience of the pins and needles last week so I'm guessing my parathyroids haven't woken up yet. In a way I guess it was my fault because I was on a trip away in Scotland and decided to try and walk up Ben Nevis...needless to say I didn't get very far! We got to a bench stop maybe 1 mile into the hike and decided to turn around and check out the visitor centre. Much warmer! Are you still on the adcals?

Thank you for your reply. It's motivating to hear that I still might be able to come off them even after a few months. Recovery is going pretty well thank you, just a pain waiting for the RAI and being in a bit of a limbo. I read on another thread that you're having a tough time with your own journey, I'm sorry that you're going through this and I wish you all the best, just need to keep plodding through xx

Thank you @Ocean23 and I hope your own experiences are positive and RAI mops up any residual thyroid cells.

It's good that you're getting some advice and support from doctors in your recovery. I don't understand why but I won't be seeing the Oncologist until January so a full three and a half months after the RAI.  I'll be having a Thyroglobulin blood test in December and I suppose will get the results at the January appointment.   I think I'll ask my GP for a general thyroid blood test form in the meantime as I'd like to get an idea of how my thyroid levels are doing now.

The pins and needles have settled down  and Ive stopped taking the Ad Cal tablets so I hope that means that my parathyroids have recovered  but I'll ask the GP for a calcium blood test too for reassurance. My fingernails look wonderful after taking AdCal for a few weeks though! 

Walking a mile in beautiful countryside sounds like a great achievement to me after your operation and the RAI so I hope you rewarded yourself with something nice in the Visitors Centre!