Indications for surgery in thyroiditis

Inflammatory processes of the thyroid represents a main proportion of the gland's pathology but the majority of them are treated by medical methods, surgery being indicated. In 14 cases (3%) from 464 operations for different thyroid conditions we have encountered authentic inflammatory lesions in 9 cases of Hashimoto's thyroiditis (two associated with papillary thyroid carcinoma and one with malignant lymphoma), two cases of Riedel's thyroiditis and respectively de Quervain thyoiditis, tuberculous thyroiditis and actynomicosis one case each. The common lymphoplasmacytic infiltration in Basedow's disease was not considered likewise as the inflammatory nespecific lesions encountered in benign and malignant pathology of the gland. The clinical and imagistic data, biological evaluation and titer of anticorps but particularly the paraffine examination together with intraoperative estimations are decisive for the diagnosis. Firm diagnosis of thyroiditis was rarely affirmed before operation, surgical indication being formulated on clinical criterions dominated by cancer suspicion. Among these are diffuse or (multi)nodular thyromegaly with a dominant nodule with recent appearance and rapid growing in temporal and geographic proximity of Chemobyl disaster, with hard consistence, celsian or compressive features and adenopathy. More added the imagistic signs but especially suspect aspects of the FNAB (follicular or with Hürthle cells smears) and also of the frozen sections. Certainty diagnosis was established by paraffine examination not always without hesitations or reexamination (Hashimoto's thyroiditis diagnosed in one case was finally a malignant lymphoma). Large removal decided after intraoperative findings induced for the most of patients a definitive hypothyroidism. All the diagnosis resources must be exhausted for the diagnosis of the inflammatory lesions of the thyroid to avoid unnecessary surgery. On the other side the chronic overstimulation by the TSH of the glandular tissue affected by the immune process, represent an important factor of producing neoplasia.