Sore throat & Swallowing trouble after Parathyroid Surgery

Fascinating responses.  I too wish I had gone to Florida to Dr. Norman for parathyroid surgery.  I went to a general surgeon who said he had done over a thousand parathyroid surgeries.  Following surgery and checking hospital records over the past 8 years he could not have done anywhere near that amount of surgery.  The surgeon was recommended by my primary care doctor in Boise, ID.  He was charming and his office was like the taj mahal so I though wow, he must be successful, he must be a good surgeon, wrong!!!  I had hyperplasia of two mildly enlarged parathyroid glands.  When all was said and done, I had removed my thymus (small amount of "normal"parathyroid tissue found there, and he removed four lymph nodes, also normal.  The surgeon tripled his fee by doing this unnecessary surgery.  I was left with over a week of difficult painful recovery with a tube hanging out of my chest draining blood and fluid.  I also couldn't talk and I had severe symptoms of hypoparathyroidism.  Something seems to have happened to the two remaining parathyroid glands that are no longer producing PTH.  He either injured them directly or destroyed their blood supply.  One year later: I have paralysis of one vocal cord and can only speak in a whisper, and I am under treatment for hypoparathyroidism.  I felt worse after the surgery than I have ever felt in my life.  I can't stress strongly enough for anyone who needs parathyroid surgery do not go to a general surgeon, see a specialist, and if you can go to Dr. Norman you will at least have the best odds for success and avoiding complications.  The only thing that could be worse is bi-lateral vocal cord paralysis, because then you are unable to breathe, so I'm thankful that is not the case.

hello. I just had one gland removed with a mini parathyroidectomy. I had a bone scan done that I routinely have done and my bone density dropped almost 20% . My doctor phoned in a prescription for the typical bone density drugs but I didn't pick it up. I proceeded to an orthopedic doctor who sent me to an osteoporosis specialist. From there tests were done and he picked up the elevated calcium in blood and urine and also elevated PTH. I was then referred to an endocrinologist. I was told that I had low D and that it was secondary hyperparathyroid. I checked out of that doctor and proceeded to another ... She told me that hyperparathyroid disease should not cause all these symptoms I was having and proceeded to argue with me. I am a long distance runner, very athletic and became lethargic, depressed, and had bone pain and heart palpitations. I made my own appointment with a physician who did the mini surgery and within five days the affected gland was taken out. I'm four days out and started calcium and d supplements and still feel tired. My throat feels funny like a gastric burpy feeling and I have to chew my food really good. Swallowing water is not easy. It depends on the angle I have my throat. The incision is nicely done. I lost most of my muscle mass after years of working out with weights. I am a female age 57. I blamed much of my fatigue on menopause. NO, it was not menopause. It was parathyroid disease. Dr. Norman's website was very helpful. I did not fly down there because there was a doctor locally that was familiar with his work. Everything he says on his website is accurate. The scans can show nothing if the gland is behind the thyroid. The techs can do crummy scans as well. If your calcium is elevated and your PTH is up, you have at least one bum gland. Go get it out. After some thought on the consult price with Dr. Norman, I understand why... The patients are typically misinformed by their doctors and most doctors do not see much of these surgeries. I found myself arguing with physicians who were highly educated from some of the best medical schools in the country. I did ask them the questions that are posted on Dr. Norman's website and they did admit the scans are not always accurate. If they try to dose you with the 50,000 mg. of D2 to say you are D deficient, forget it. If your PTH is elevated, you have the disease. Every day that goes by you are losing more bone mass, and risking renal disease and heart disease and possibly mental clarity. I don't feel 100% yet. I took one Loritab the night after surgery.. I was alone . I had a friend drop me off and pick me up. I did fine by myself. The loritab helped with the swallowing but you will pay the next day with constipation and that puts pressure on your neck .. So, make sure you get a gentle laxative and take colace. I ate oatmeal and chicken soup for a few days. Chewing food very well is important because it can get stuck in your throat and then you start coughing. Blow your nose to keep your sinuses from dripping down into the back of your throat. DO NOT LET ANYONE CUT YOU EAR TO EAR FOR THIS SURGERY.. I will keep you posted on my recovery. I'm hoping to get back to the gym and get back to running pretty soon here. I did have a reaction to the betadine and have a rash on my chest, but that will go away. I was more concerned with the internal, and silent health issues this disease causes. Do not hesitate to fly out of state to have the surgery done if you cannot find someone who has experience. Every time you swallow or move your head, you will be thankful you have a very small incision and minimally invasive surgery. My PTH was 94 at surgery , once the gland was out (approx 1cm in size) that did not show on scan!!, my pth dropped in operating room to 24! So, now my bones are getting what they need. I cannot stress enough the accuracy of Dr. Norman's website. I understand him dumping scans in the trash. I'm sure he has to answer question after question from patients that tell him what their doctor's told them. After educating myself, I used much of what I learned on his website to be my own advocate. Endocrinologists have the thing just come back in three months and we will check you again. If your PTH is elevated and your calcium is up, find a surgeon who does the mini surgery. Don't wait.. Just keep moving. If you are slammed with brain fog, have a friend help you with the research. If the brain fog comes and goes, wait until it lifts and then do your own research. Best of luck to all who suffer with this fatiguing disease!

i had a large lump removed from the left side of my thyroid 2 weeks ago after the first week i felt so full of energy and much better than before i had the operation done then after this second week one day i feel fine the next day is not so good. also when i lay down in bed im having trouble swallowing on the right side where the lump was removed and feels like its pulling all the time i swallow. where the incision was made has healed up very well except for a bit on the end of it on the side that the lump was removed is quite red i didnt know if this has anything to do with the feeling of pulling on the inside of my throat ive been able to do some cleaning but i want to go back to the gym and im not sure how long i should wait in case i do more damage to my throat, i feel alright in myself to go but i dont want to make things worse.does anyone have an answer to this problem that i am suffering with.. help.

Dear Joyce:
My wife has the same problem. Did you get any replies to your post? If so, how can I access them?
don

Hi. I too had surgery 2 weeks ago with Dr. Norman. Had a parathyroid tumor removed and 2 nodules. I now feel like I have a golf ball in my throat. Really? I have to be one of the 3%?? I hope that it is gone in 6 weeks as it is the most uncomfortable feeling. Hard to swallow. And very uncomfortable. Could not image having to "live" with this.

I agree on the feeling of tightness, I burp all the time now too, and I feel where it pulls when I swallow. This just started and I'm a month post op. Also had alot of feeling of someone choking me..but yet I breathe just fine. Esp after certain meals. Bread in particular. But not toast!? If the bread is crunchy I'm fine. I ate a mostly liquid.and bland diet for over a wk. Soft foods. Soup, toast, jello, yogurt, pudding, hot cocoa. And still occasionally every few days I'll go back to a bland diet. And I feel much better. stay away from fast food for a while it didn't go well with my throat. .excess grease? And salads didn't feel good either on my throat.

Are you still around? Can you please tell me which surgeon you went to in Boise? I can't find anyone!

Hi I just had my lower right parathyroid removed 3 days ago and throat still very sore but what is even worse is I feel like there is always something stuck in my throat, just floating there. Is that normal? Thanks all!

I am also experiencing exactly the same symptoms 6 weeks after surgery. A fold of skin above the scar and the feeling of tightness directly below the incision, which like yours, appears to move up the throat when swallowing taking time to resettle. Not pleasant but hope that it will improve with time. My surgeon has not given me any specific instructions post op info so I am relying on other people's posts for pointers. It helps!

I see this was over a year ago posted but, I'm experiencing the same problem, trouble swallowing. Has it gotten better? It's been a month. I've lost weight and can't eat solid food at all.

Had Norman surgery & having same symptom . I'm a week out now & not having any less trouble. Did it finally go away? How long does it take?