Thyroid Procedures
What is the Thyroid?
The thyroid gland is a butterfly-shaped organ located in the front of the neck. It produces hormones that control metabolism, which is the process of converting food into energy. Thyroid hormones also play a role in growth and development, and they can affect heart rate, body temperature, reproductive function and mood.
Thyroid disorders can generally be divided into diseases that change the function of the thyroid, and diseases that change the size of thyroid, though there is some overlap within these groups. Some thyroid diseases include:
Multinodular goiter: An enlarged thyroid gland is also known as a goiter. This is usually due to multiple lumps, or nodules, that form throughout the thyroid gland. It can lead to symptoms of neck discomfort or choking, difficulty swallowing or difficulty breathing.
Thyroid nodules: These are lumps that form on the thyroid gland. They are usually benign, but they can sometimes be cancerous. Large nodules can cause similar pressure symptoms to multinodular gaiters.
Thyroid cancer: This is a rare cancer that affects the thyroid gland. It is more common in women than men.
Toxic nodule or goiter: This is where a nodule in the thyroid, or occasionally the whole thyroid, produces excess thyroid hormone. Removal of part or the whole thyroid can normalise thyroid hormone levels and reduce the risk of complications like palpitations, heart failure and osteoporosis.
Thyroid disorders can be treated with medication, surgery, or radiation therapy. The treatment will depend on the specific disorder and its severity.
Types of Thyroid Surgery performed by Dr Hii
Partial Thyroidectomy
Partial thyroidectomy is the removal of a portion of the thyroid gland. The most common partial thyroidectomy performed is hemithyroidectomy or thyroid lobectomy, where half of the thyroid is removed during surgery.
Reasons to have a partial thyroidectomy include thyroid nodules that are causing symptoms of pressure, nodules in which there is a risk of cancer, or nodules that produce excess thyroid hormone. Hemithyroidectomy can also be curative surgery for small, low risk thyroid cancers. Most people (80%) do not require longterm treatment with thyroid hormone tablets after partial thyroidectomy.
Hemithyroidectomy is performed under general anaesthesia through a small incision in the neck. Patients are monitored in hospital over night, however routine blood tests are not required in hospital. We will check your thyroid hormone levels six to eight weeks after surgery to see if replacement is needed.
Total Thyroidectomy
Total thyroidectomy is a surgical procedure where the entire thyroid gland is removed. Since the entire thyroid gland is removed, lifelong thyroid hormone replacement is required after surgery.
There are a few reasons why you might need a total thyroidectomy. These include an enlarged thyroid gland (goitres) that causes breathing or swallowing problems, thyroid cancer, or goitres that secrete excess thyroid hormone.
Total thyroidectomy is performed under general anaesthesia and patients are monitored in hospital for one night. It is necessary to check parathyroid hormone and calcium levels after total thyroidectomy.
Completion Thyroidectomy
Completion thyroidectomy is a surgical procedure where all residual thyroid tissue is removed after a previous surgery that removed less than the entire thyroid gland. This might be necessary if the initial surgery didn't remove all of the diseased tissue, or if new problems develop in the remaining thyroid tissue.
The most common reason for a completion thyroidectomy is to reduce the risk of thyroid cancer recurrence and improve the quality of monitoring after thyroid cancer diagnosis. Completion thyroidectomy can also be performed if new problems develop in the remaining thyroid tissue.
Thyroid hormone replacement is necessary after completion thyroidectomy as all remaining thyroid tissue is removed during the procedure. Calcium and parathyroid hormone levels are monitored after surgery, as both sides of the thyroid have been operated on.
DR BELINDA HII | MELBOURNE ENDOCRINE SURGEON
Providing personalised, specialist surgical care for diseases of the adrenal, thyroid and parathyroid glands.