Table 2.

874 parathyroid glands identified at the primary operation in 223 patients for secondary hyperparathyroidism

Location	No. of parathyroid glands	The size (cm)	The volume (cm3)	The weight (g)
Right superior parathyroid gland	214	1.4 ± 0.57 (0.5–3.5)	0.35 ± 0.69 (0.01–4.24)	0.40 ± 0.65 (0.01–3.84)
Right inferior parathyroid gland	221	1.6 ± 0.48 (0.6–2.8)	0.60 ± 0.68 (0.06–3.27)	0.63 ± 0.69 (0.03–3.7)
Left superior parathyroid gland	221	1.5 ± 0.50 (0.4–3)	0.38 ± 0.60 (0.02–4.71)	0.40 ± 0.62 (0.01–4.55)
Left inferior parathyroid gland	218	1.6 ± 0.51 (0.5–3)	0.59 ± 0.81 (0.03–4.70)	0.67 ± 0.73 (0.04–4.32)

Data are expressed as mean ± S.D