Background: Data on thyroid surgery in children are scarce.
Objective: Analyze outcome data on thyroid surgery in a pediatric population.
Design: Medical record review.
Setting: Tertiary health care institution.
Patients and methods: We collected demographic and clinical data on patients 18 years or younger who had thyroid surgery in the period 2000 to 2014. Descriptive data are presented.
Main outcome measures: Indications for thyroidectomy, thyroid pathology, complications, length of stay, and radioactive iodine treatment and recurrences.
Sample size: 103.
Results: Of 103 patients who underwent 112 thyroidectomy procedures, 80 (78%) were females and the mean age at operation was 13.2 years. and 17 (16%) were associated with multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2. There was no history of radiation exposure. Eighty-one patients (78%) had fine needle aspiration (FNA) which correlated with the final histopathology in 94% of cases. Sixty-six patients (64%) had malignant cancer (61 papillary), 44 (74.6%) of 59 patients who had neck dissection had lymph node metastasis and 7 (11%) had distant metastases to the lung. Procedures included total thyroidectomy (50%), hemithyroidectomy (17%), completion (31%), and subtotal thyroidectomy (2%). Twenty-three patients (22%) developed hypocalcemia (3 permanent) and 6 (5.8%) had unilateral recurrent laryngeal nerve injury (3 permanent). Patients were followed up for a mean duration of 71.7 months (median 60 months). Of 66 patients with thyroid cancer, 43 (65%) received radioactive iodine, and 10 (15%) had recurrence.
Conclusion: Malignancy is the commonest indication for thyroid surgery in children and FNA is highly diagnostic. Hypocalcemia and recurrent laryngeal nerve injury are significant complications. The recurrence rate in thyroid cancer is 15%.
Limitations: Retrospective.
Conflict of interest: None.