Is thyroid frozen section too much for too little?

BACKGROUND: The role of frozen section (FS) in thyroid disease is controversial. The goal of this study was to identify a cohort of patients who may or may not benefit from FS. METHODS: Two hundred thirty-one patients who underwent thyroidectomy were evaluated in regard to fine-needle aspiration (FNA), FS, and the extent of surgery. RESULTS: In all, 155 patients underwent FNA, 140 patients underwent FS, and 103 patients had both. A final diagnosis of malignancy was obtained in 47 of 231 patients. FNA had a sensitivity of 50% and a specificity of 99%, and FS had a sensitivity of 50% and a specificity of 100% for diagnosing malignancy. Accounting for the clinical findings and FNA results, FS results altered the extent of thyroidectomy in 1 of 103 patients. CONCLUSIONS: The increased costs for the operative time and the pathologists needed to obtain routine FS are not supported with any substantial benefit in patient outcome.     

Palliative thyroidectomy for malignant lymphoma of the thyroid

Background Current treatment of malignant lymphoma of the thyroid consists of chemotherapy and external beam radiation. The diagnosis can routinely be made by fine-needle aspiration, obviating the need for surgery. However, a significant number of patients present with symptoms of obstruction, necessitating thyroidectomy for palliation. Methods To determine the outcomes of patients with malignant thyroid lymphoma after palliative thyroidectomy, we reviewed our experience. Between 1980 and 2001, 27 patients with thyroid lymphoma and symptoms or signs of airway and/or esophageal obstruction were evaluated at 1 of 3 academic institutions. Results The mean age of the patients was 66±3 years, and the majority was female. Patients presented with symptoms of dyspnea/stridor (30%), dysphagia/pain (30%), or impending airway obstruction (40%). All underwent palliative surgery. In addition to surgery, 10 patients had combined chemo- and radiotherapy, 10 had radiotherapy alone, and 4 had only chemotherapy. Symptom-free survival after palliative surgery was determined by Kaplan-Meier analysis. The mean actuarial symptom-free survival of patients with symptomatic, malignant thyroid lymphoma was 10 years (95% confidence interval, 7.67 to 12.33 years). Conclusions Patients with malignant lymphoma of the thyroid can present with obstructive symptoms requiring palliative intervention. In this group of patients, thyroidectomy can be associated with good long-term palliation and low morbidity.     

Thyroid cancer in pregnancy.

OBJECTIVE: To compare stage at diagnosis, treatment and survival among pregnant women with thyroid cancer to non-pregnant women with thyroid cancer, and to assess the impact of treatment on maternal and perinatal outcomes. METHODS: A database containing maternal and newborn discharge records linked to the California Cancer Registry was queried to obtain information on all thyroid cancers from 1991-1999. Women with thyroid cancer occurring during pregnancy were compared to age-matched non-pregnant women with thyroid cancer. RESULTS: 595 cases of thyroid cancers were identified (129 antepartum and 466 postpartum). About 64% of thyroid cancers were diagnosed at stage 2 among pregnant women versus 58% among non-pregnant controls. The odds of thyroid cancer were 1.5 times higher among Asian/Pacific Islanders than among Non-Hispanic White women. Pregnancy had no significant effect on mortality after diagnosis of thyroid cancer. Thyroidectomy during pregnancy was not associated with adverse maternal or neonatal outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Thyroid cancer discovered during or after pregnancy does not appear to have a significant impact on the prognosis of the disease.     

鼻内镜辅助下甲状腺部分切除术

目的探讨鼻内镜辅助下甲状腺部分切除术的可行性及优缺点。方法采用颈部皮瓣悬吊法，经胸骨切迹上切口，鼻内镜辅助下行甲状腺部分切除术7例。结果7例手术平均时间为155min。术中平均出血量为75ml。术后平均6h可离床活动，住院平均天数4．5天。7例患者均为孤立性甲状腺结节，术中冰冻与术后病理一致，2例为甲状腺腺瘤，5例结节性甲状腺肿。术后颈部切口无明显疤痕、美容效果满意。随访半年，患者无诉吞咽不适、颈前皮肤感觉无麻木感、局部肿物无复发。结论与传统的甲状腺手术相比，鼻内镜辅助下甲状腺部分切除术，切口隐蔽，美容效果好，术后并发症少。     

经乳晕入路腔镜甲状腺切除术并发症防治体会

目的　探讨经乳晕入路的腔镜甲状腺切除术并发症的预防及处理。方法　使用超声刀经乳晕入路行腔镜甲状腺切除术及各种并发症治疗。结果　经胸部乳晕入路的腔镜甲状腺切除术 2 0 0例 ,成功 194例。术中无严重并发症 ,术后主要出现甲状腺危象 1例 ,一过性声音低钝 1例 ,一过性声音嘶哑 2例。术后随访 1～ 2 0个月 ,至今无复发病例。结论　熟悉甲状腺的解剖结构、病理 ,熟练腔镜操作技术 ,加上开放甲状腺手术的经验 ,行乳晕入路的腔镜甲状腺切除术可预防或减少各种并发症的发生。     

微型腹腔镜甲状腺肿瘤切除术的临床研究

目的探讨微型腹腔镜在甲状腺肿瘤切除术中的疗效。方法运用微型腹腔镜对13例甲状腺肿瘤患者进行经胸部入路的甲状腺切除术。结果13例手术均获成功,患者恢复良好,平均手术时间90min,平均术中出血量20mL,平均术后住院时间6d。术后无出血、窒息、喉返神经或甲状旁腺损伤等严重并发症。结论微型腹腔镜甲状腺肿瘤切除术安全可靠,美容效果明显,是目前腔镜甲状腺手术方式中创伤较小的一种新术式。     

甲状腺术后声带运动正常而发音障碍机理的探讨

甲状腺摘除术后发音障碍７０例中，５８例为声带麻痹；１２例声带运动正常，但有声音嘶哑。用肌电图检查了１２例声带运动正常的喉内肌电位，发现一侧或双侧喉上神经轻度或完全麻痹者４例；一侧或双侧喉上和喉返神经轻度或完全麻痹者５例；一侧或双侧喉返神经麻痹者３例。以上三种类型麻痹是声带运动正常但嘶哑的原因，尤其是喉上神经麻痹是甲状腺术后发音障碍不可忽视的原因。     

Analysis of the role of thyroidectomy and thymectomy in the surgical treatment of secondary hyperparathyroidism

Purpose

Parathyroidectomy can be subtotal or total with an autograft for the treatment of renal hyperparathyroidism. In both cases, it may be extended with bilateral thymectomy and total or partial thyroidectomy. Thymectomy may be recommended in combination with parathyroidectomy in order to prevent mediastinal recurrence. Also, the occurrence of thyroid disease observed in patients with hyperparathyroidism is poorly understood and the incidence of cancer is controversial. The aim of the present study was to report the experience of a single center in the surgical treatment of renal hyperparathyroidism and to analyse the role of thyroid and thymus surgery in association with parathyroidectomy.

Microscopic thyroidectomy: a prospective controlled trial

The purpose of this prospective study was to evaluate microsurgical thyroidectomy by comparing it with traditional thyroidectomy. Before surgery, patients were assigned either to the microscopic thyroidectomy group (MT group), with the use of the surgical microscope, or the traditional thyroidectomy group (TT group), without the use of visual magnification. Outcome measures were operative time, intraoperative bleeding and complication rates including injury to the recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN), the external branch of the superior laryngeal nerve (EBSLN) or the parathyroid glands. Ninety-eight patients underwent thyroid surgery (58 patients in the MT group, 40 patients in the TT group). The two groups were similar in age, sex, surgical procedures and histological findings. There was no difference between the two techniques regarding the operative time and the amount of blood loss. Neither permanent nerve palsy nor persistent hypocalcemia occurred in either group. Transient nerve palsies (RLN and EBSLN) were lower in the MT group (1.7%) compared to the TT group (7.5%), but the difference did not reach statistical significance (P>0.05). Overall transient hypocalcemia was significantly lower in the MT group (1.7%) compared with the TT group (12.5%, P=0.032). If the population was restricted to total thyroidectomy, the rate of transient hypocalcemia was 4.1% in the MT group and 33.3% in the TT group, respectively (P=0.022). In conclusion, microsurgical thyroidectomy is a feasible and efficacious surgical procedure. It significantly reduces the complications without increasing the operating time in thyroid surgery procedures. A major advantage of this technique is the possibility of attaching a camera to the microscope, thereby greatly facilitating teaching.The authors did not receive any financial support for this study.     

Effect of thyroidectomy on the histology of rat sublingual gland

This study was carried out to investigate the effect of thyroidectomy on the histology of rat sublingual gland. Twenty-eight male Wistar albino rats, aged 4 weeks and weighing between 45-55 g, were used. The rats were divided into two experimental groups (control and thyroidectomy), each containing 14 animals. Total thyroidectomy of rats was performed under ether anesthesia in thyroidectomy group. The rats in the control group were sham operated without having the thyroidectomy. Seven rats randomly selected from both groups were fixed using the perfusion fixation technique 2 and 6 weeks after thyroidectomy, and their sublingual glands were harvested for histological investigation. No histological difference was observed between the two groups 2 weeks after thyroidectomy. However, 6 weeks after thyroidectomy considerable cytoplasmic vacuolization of the epithelial cells of the mucous tubules was seen in the thyroidectomy group compared to the controls. Enlargement of mucous tubules was also observed, and the lumina in most of the tubules was quite dilated. In the stroma surrounding the parenchymal tissues, increased lipid tissue mass was observed. In addition, increased connective tissue mass and mononuclear cell infiltrations were evident. Furthermore, the number of mast cells was significantly higher in the thyroidectomy group than in the controls 6 weeks after thyroidectomy. It was concluded that the thyroid gland and hormones might have an influence on the histology of the sublingual gland.