Thyroid Surgery Risks: What You Need to Know

There are risks with having thyroid surgery, just the same as there are with any other type of surgery. The risks to having thyroid surgery should be addressed before the decision is made to have it. Making sure your surgeon is well qualified and has the necessary experience in thyroid surgery will be crucial as well.

Types

• The risks associated with thyroid surgery can be divided into three types: those related to general surgery, to the anesthestic, or to damage of the area around the thyroid during surgery.

Effects

• These risks could include the formation of blood clots in the body after surgery which can break off and become lodged in the arteries. Strokes, heart attacks and pneumonia can occur due to the anesthetic. Damage to the nerves can cause hoarseness that is sometimes permanent while damage to other glands can lead to dangerously low calcium levels in the body.

Prevalence

• According to the American Thyroid Association, serious complications develop in less than 2 percent of all thyroid surgeries.

Risks

• The risk of complication is greatest in people who have other medical conditions, such as heart disease, and in individuals who are having large thyroid tumors removed. Inexperienced surgeons can also increase your risk.

Althernatives

• For cancer, surgery is the only option. For other thyroid problems, medications or radioactive iodine therapy can sometimes be used effectively. Some thyroid conditions go away on their own without treatment but still need to be diagnosed by a doctor.