There is considerable controversy concerning the most appropriate surgica1 treatment of patients with differentiated thyroid cancer. This study was conducted to determine the op timal surgical operation by analysis of morbidity and mortality according to the operative method adopted. The clinical records were reviewed from 128 cases with thyroid cancer treated at the department of Surgery, Korea University Hospital. between January 1985 and December 1992. Local complications were defined as those occurring in the operative areas or as local results after the surgery during the hospitalization. Forty-five patients (35%) underwent total thyroidectomy, 30(23%) total thyroidectomy with radical lymph node dissection, 20(16%) subtotal thyroidectomy, and 33(26%) thyroid lobectomy. Nineteen patients(14.8%) experienced temporary local complications. Out of 19(14.8%) transient hypocalcemia, 1 case occurred after subtotal thyroidectomy and 18 cases after total thyroidectomy. Four cases(3%) of bleeding occured after various types of thyroidectomy(l case after lobectomy, 1 case after subtotal thyroidectomy, 2 cases after total thyroidectomy). One case of wound infection after lobectomy and one case of recurrent laryngeal nerve in jury after total thyroidectomy were also identified. There were no postoperative deaths. The most frequent morbidity was transient hypocalcemia following the total thyroidectomy. Although total thyroidectomy relatively induced more postoperative complications than other procedure, the temporary postoperative complications were less important. Our data suggest that total thyroidectomy could be considered as an operative treatment of the thyroid cancer.
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