Thyroid Gland

Personally performed operations (as of 2018): 284
Total of performed visceral operations: over 14.000

The thyroid gland is responsible for a lot of metabolic functions. In the cases of hyper or hypofunction or the suspicion of a tumor, surgery can often mean healing.

Surgery of the thyroid gland

Total thyroidectomy

In the course of this procedure, both thyroid lobes and the pyramidal lobe are removed. There is no remaining tissue. The patient is required to take thyroid hormones perpetually.

Hemithyroidectomy

Only one half of the thyroid gland is removed. The intake of hormones is not necessarily vital.

Enucleation

A pathologically altered node of the thyroid gland is removed. Apart from that, the organ remains intact.

Possible complications

It is important to mention, that surgery of the thyroid gland can lead to injury of the so-called nervus laryngeus recurrens, the nerve of the vocal cords. In my personal record, the risk of this happening in a primary intervention is around 2 percent.