Complications to thyroid surgery: results as reported in a database from a multicenter audit comprising 3,660 patients

Abstract
Background and Aim  During recent years, more radical surgery for thyroid disease, i.e., total instead of subtotal resection, has been evident.
Results following this strategy on national levels are scarce.

Materials and methods  From 2004 to 2006, 26 Scandinavian Departments registered 3,660 thyroid operations in a database. Risk factors for complications
were analyzed with multiple logistic regression.

Results  After thyroidectomy, re-bleeding occurred in 2.1% and was associated with older age (OR 1.04; p < 0.0001) and male gender (OR 1.90; p = 0.014). Postoperative infection occurred in 1.6% and associated with lymph node operation (OR 8.18; p < 0.0001). Postoperative unilateral paresis of the recurrent laryngeal nerve was diagnosed 3.9% and bilateral paresis in
0.2%. Unilateral paresis was associated with older age, intrathoracic goiter, thyreotoxicosis, and if routine laryngoscopy
was practiced (OR 1.92; p = 0.0002). After 6 months, the incidence of nerve paresis was 0.97%. After bilateral thyroid surgery (n = 1,648), hypocalcaemia treated with vitamin D analogue occurred in 9.9% of the patients at the first follow-up and in 4.4%
after 6 months.

Conclusion  Complications to thyroid surgery are not uncommon. The high frequency of hypocalcaemia treated with vitamin D after 6 months
is a cause of concern.

Content Type Journal ArticleCategory Controlled Prospective Clinical TrialsDOI 10.1007/s00423-008-0366-7Authors
A. Bergenfelz, Director for the Scandanavian Quality Register for Thyroid and Parathyroid Surgery Lund SwedenS. Jansson, Sahlgrenska Hospital Department of Surgery Gothenburg SwedenA. Kristoffersson, Umeå University Hospital Department of Surgery Umeå SwedenH. Mårtensson, Helsingborg Central Hospital Department of Surgery Helsingborg SwedenE. Reihnér, Karolinska University Hospital Department of Surgery Stockholm SwedenG. Wallin, Karolinska University Hospital Department of Surgery Stockholm SwedenI. Lausen, Copenhagen University Hospital, Rigshospitalet Department of Breast and Endocrine Surgery Copenhagen Denmark

Journal Langenbeck's Archives of SurgeryOnline ISSN 1435-2451Print ISSN 1435-2443 (Source: Langenbeck's Archives of Surgery)  MedWorm Sponsored Message: Find out how you can get your message across here by sponsoring this MedWorm news feed.