combination therapy of ethanol ablation and radiofrequency ablation to treat parathyroid adenoma in a case with primary hyperparathyroidism

Introduction: ethanol ablation (ea) and radiofrequency ablation (rfa) are minimal invasive therapeutic modalities to treat primary hyperparathyroidism (phpt). case presentation: a 77-year-old man presented a 3.5-cm parathyroid adenoma with mixed cystic and solid components. he was ineligible for parathyroidectomy because of his age and the surgical history of the coronary artery bypass graft. first, ea was performed to remove cystic component. after that, the volume of parathyroid adenoma was decreased (volume reduction rate: 94%); however, the level of serum parathyroid hormone (pth) was persistently high (88 pg/ml). subsequent rfa was performed to remove the remaining parathyroid adenoma. further, it was completely disappeared on the following ultrasound examination, and pth was normalized. the results during a 2-year follow-up confirmed clinical success, and no relevant complication was reported. conclusion: the combination therapy of ea and subsequent rfa is safe and effective as an alternative therapeutic method to treat phpt in patients ineligible for parathyroidectomy.