[Surgical aspects in thyroid carcinoma. Retrospective studies of 216 patients operated on between 1971 and 1986].

A retrospective review of 216 patients with thyroid cancer was made. In 56.0% of the cases a total thyroidectomy was performed immediately. 29.2% of the patients were first treated with partial surgery, but afterwards they had a reintervention to totalize the thyroidectomy. In the presence of lymph nodes a functional or radical neck dissection was done. The most important post-operative complications included permanent vocal cord paralysis (5.1%) and paresis (1.9%), and hypoparathyroidism (7.8%).