Muhammad Saleem Shaikh, Hafeezullah Abro, Kheo Ram Dholia, Sikandar Ali Shaikh.
Risks and complications of thyroid surgery: a 10 years experience..
J Surg Pak Jan ;12(1):19-22.

Objective: To evaluate the risks and complications of thyroid surgery in our setup. Design: An analytical study. Place and Duration of Study: This study was conducted at Civil Hospital Karachi, and Chandka Medical College Hospital Larkana over a period of 10 years from January 1996 to December 2005. Patients and Methods: A total number of 450 patients with various types of goitre operated were included (280 in Civil Hospital Karachi and 170 in CMCH Larkana). Postoperative complications were evaluated in all patients. The data obtained and analyzed by filling a specially designed proforma for each patient. Anaesthetic and cardiovascular complications were excluded. Results: Among 450 patients, 46 were male and 388 female (male to female ratio 0.16:1). Age ranged from 16 to 73 years (mean age 36 years). The commonest surgical procedures performed were subtotal thyroidectomy (70.22%) followed by lobectomy with isthmusectomy (22.67%). The common complications were haemorrhage and haematoma (2.0%) followed by laryngeal oedema (1.8%), and transient recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy (RLNP) (1.7%). Average hospital stay was 3.5 days in uncomplicated cases. Conclusions: It is concluded that proper patient selection, pre-operative evaluation, and skilled surgical technique are the hallmarks of success in thyroid surgery. Therefore it is considered to be safe and successful in the hands of surgeons with special interest in thyroid surgery.

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