Thyroid surgery according to Enderlen-Hotz or Dunhill: a comparison of two surgical methods for the treatment of Graves' disease.

摘要

The surgical therapy of Graves' disease is favored in Germany, which is an iodine-deficient area, and nodular transformation is common. The surgical methods mainly differ in their extent of resection. We examined 152 patients with regard to operative and postoperative complications in a prospective randomized study. Patients were randomized to two groups: treated either by subtotal resection on both sides (STT) or subtotal resection with contralateral hemithyroidectomy (SHT), the two most common surgical procedures. The follow-up period was 6 years; complication and recurrence rates were studied. There was no significant difference concerning mortality, recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy, hypocalcemia, secondary hemorrhage, wound infections, or recurrence rate between STT and SHT. However, SHT only requires a unilateral resection in case of a recurrence, thus reducing the risk of bilateral recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy.