Cardiovascular findings in patients with nonsurgical hypoparathyroidism and pseudohypoparathyroidism: A cohort study

Objective As only sparse data are available on indices of cardiovascular health among patients with nonsurgical hypoparathyroidism (Ns-HypoPT) and pseudohypoparathyroidism (PHP), we aimed to compare the cardiovascular profile between these groups of patients. Methods A total of 56 patients with Ns-HypoPT and 30 with PHP were included and underwent a clinical examination including blood sampling and measurements of arterial stiffness, pulse wave velocity (PWV) and blood pressure (BP). Arterial stiffness and PWV were measured using AtCor SphygmoCor-XCEL (Atcor Medical Pty Ltd, Sydney, NSW, Australia). Results Patients with Ns-HypoPT had an average age of 47 +/- 17 years (68% females) and PHP patients 36 +/- 13 years (80% females). Over 70% in both groups were genetically screened. Groups did not differ in terms of a history of cardiovascular disease, smoking status, use of calcium and vitamin D supplements or treatment with cholesterol-lowering or antihypertensive drugs. Compared with Ns-HypoPT, PHP patients had significantly lower levels of high-density lipoproteins (HDL) cholesterol and average glucose from HbA1c (P-both = 0.01). PWV was significantly higher among patients with Ns-HypoPT (P-crude = 0.02), even after adjustment for mean arterial pressure, body mass index, age and gender (P-adjusted < 0.01). Heart rate was significantly higher in Ns-HypoPT compared with PHP (P = 0.03). Office BP and 24-hour ambulatory BP did not differ between groups (P > 0.05). Conclusion Patients with Ns-HypoPT have compared with PHP a higher arterial stiffness and heart rate. This has been associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Our data suggest that resistance to PTH is present in the cardiovascular system in PHP.