Thyroidectomy in the elderly – its specifics, limitations & contraindications

Overview

Introduction:
The incidence of thyreopathy ranges between 6–8% in the population and shows an increasing trend. The occurrence of thyroid function and morphology changes rises significantly with increasing age. Given the gradual process of ageing of the population and the above, thyreopathies are beginning to be considered a common disease in the elderly.

Method:
We operated on 1638 patients for thyreopathies in the last five years. The patients included 1315 females with the mean age of 54.63 years and 323 males with the mean age of 55.95 years.

Results:
In the cohort of operated patients we retrospectively compared the group of the elderly to the younger population with respect to the extent of surgery, histology results and postoperative complications.

Conclusion:
Age is not a contraindication for thyroidectomy; the biological status of the patient is what decides. In the elderly, the indication criteria should always be more rigorous and should be evaluated strictly individually in a broad context.

Key words:
thyreopathy – surgery treatment – elderly