A Clinical Study on Surgically Managed Thyroid Diseases: Trend of Thyroid Operation in Catholic Medical Center, Korea from 1988 to 1992

Kim, Hyung Keun; Moon, Sung Dae; Chang, Sang Ah; Ahn, Yoo Bae; Song, Ki Ho; Han, Je Ho; Yoo, Soon Jip; Lee, Jong Min; Son, Hyun Sik; Yoon, Kun Ho; Kang, Moo Il; Cha, Bong Yun; Lee, Kwang Woo; Son, Ho Young; Kang, Sung Ku

Abstract

OBJECTIVES
The thyroid disease is the common form of endocrine diseases, which often requires surgical management. Recently, fine needle aspiration biopsy is widely used preoperatively. As a result, some studies show that numbers of thyroid operation have decreased significantly. We performed this study to analyze the clinical features of thyroid diseases and the trend of thyroid operation in Korea.
METHODS
We reviewed medical records of 1787 cases with thyroid diseases who were managed surgically in Catholic Medical Center, Korea from 1988 to 1992.
RESULTS
1) The percentage of thyroid diseases in total cases undergoing operation in Department of General Surgery was 3%, which tended to decrease with time.2) 72.9% of thyroid diseases was benign. Among them, the frequency of nodular hyperplasia and follicular adenoma were 67.5% and 18.4%, respectively.3) The percentage of thyroid cancers in thyroid diseases was 27.1%, which tended to increase with time. The frequency of papillary adenocarcinoma was 78.6%, follicular adenocarcinoma 18.2% and medullary carcinoma 1.5%.4) Thyroid cancers were most commonly found in the forty and sixty decades. Male:female ratio was 1:8.5.5) 7.6% of thyroid cancers was accompanied by benign thyroid diseases which were mostly nodular hyperplasia and follicular adenoma.6) The most common type of operation was lobectomy (82.5%) in benign thyroid diseases, and total thyroidectomy (47.1%) and lobectomy (41.1%) in thyroid cancers.7) Fine needle aspiration biopsy was performed in 51.7% of thyroid nodules, the frequency of which tended to increase with time. The sensitivity, specificity, false negative rate and false positive rate of this test were 78.3%, 89.4%, 13.7% and 17.2%, respectively.
CONCLUSION
With the use of fine needle aspiration biopsy, numbers of thyroid operation decreased and the percentage of thyroid cancers in thyroid operation increased.