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Reliable techniques for detecting and localising abnormal parathyroid tissue have been a persistent problem. We have evaluated thallium-pertechnetate subtraction scintigraphy in a prospective study of 40 patients with clinical and biochemical evidence of hyperparathyroidism prior to parathyroid surgery. Four patients were excluded as they were shown to have goitre, making subtraction scanning non-diagnostic. 89% of parathyroid adenomas (totalling 27 glands in 26 patients) and 41% of hyperplastic glands (17 glands in 6 patients) were accurately localised prior to surgery. These included three retrosternal glands, four patients with renal failure and tertiary hyperparathyroidism and five patients who had previously undergone neck exploration. The apparent discrepancy between detecting hyperplastic and adenomatous glands was associated with the smaller size of the former. For both types of gland, scintigraphy successfully located parathyroids 0.6 g or more in weight. These results suggest that this simple and non-invasive method is a useful technique for locating parathyroid tissue before parathyroid surgery.

On this, the anniversary of the bringing to Mainz of the martyred body of St Boniface, it seems appropriate that any remarks about the Anglo-Saxon mission to Germany should be confined to his activities alone. Unfortunately, the story of his life has been told by many people at many times, and in default of new facts and documents, it is not possible to do more than repeat what is already well known.To me the life of St Boniface appears to fall into three main periods: his mission from Gregory II to preach the gospel ‘ad quascumque gentes infidelitatis errore detentas’; his work in Thuringia among a partly christianized people; and his organization of the Church in Germany together with the reform of the Frankish Church. In other words, his activities as priest, as bishop, and as archbishop. These three divisions illustrate not only the problems he had to face, but also the methods with which he attacked them.