Introduction: The origin of parathyroid glands is from branchial pouches. As the fetus grows the parathyroid drift to their location near to the thyroid gland, but the final destination of the parathyroid glands are very variable. The knowledge of the location of the glands is very important in either thyroid surgery or parathyroid surgery as their identification poses a very difficult situation intraoperatively owing to their small size and the texture resembling the surrounding tissue. So the objective of this study was to revisit the knowledge on the anatomical location of the parathyroid glands.

Materials and Methods: A prospective study was conducted from 2013 to 2017 at department of general surgery, Victoria hospital, Bangalore. A total of 277 cases were studied which included cases of both thyroid surgery and the parathyroid surgery as well. The locations of both superior and inferior parathyroid on both sides were noted.

Results: The common location of the inferior parathyroid was close to the tubercle of Zuckerkandl 58% right side and 61% on the left side. The superior parathyroids were also close to tubercle but comparatively little farther than the inferior. Right side 55% and left 49%. The relation of parathyroids with lateral surface of the thyroid gland was next consistent location.

Conclusion: The surgeon must be always cautious during thyroidectomies due to the close relation of the parathyroids. The various locations of the parathyroids make them unpredictable. With some light on the key locations through this study, it can help the surgeon to locate the parathyroids with some ease and preserve them.

Keywords: Parathyroid; Tubercle of Zuckerkandl; RLN (recurrent laryngeal nerve).