title: Pediatric thyroidectomy: a collaborative surgical approach.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  We have developed a collaborative approach to pediatric thyroid surgery, with operations performed at a children's hospital by a pediatric surgeon and an endocrine surgeon. We hypothesize that this strategy minimizes specialist-specific limitations and optimizes care of children with surgical thyroid disease.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data from all partial and total thyroidectomies performed by the pediatric-endocrine surgery team at a tertiary children's hospital between 1995 and 2009 were collected and analyzed retrospectively. Statistical analyses were performed with IBM SPSS software (SPSS, Chicago, IL).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Thirty-five children met the inclusion criteria (69% female; median age, 13 years; median follow-up, 1119 days). The indications for operation were thyroid nodule (71%), genetic abnormality with predisposition to thyroid malignancy (17%), multinodular goiter (5.7%), Grave disease (2.9%), and Hashimoto thyroiditis (2.9%). Sixteen children (46%) underwent thyroid lobectomy, and 19 children (54%) underwent total thyroidectomy. Median length of stay was 1 day (1 day after lobectomy vs 2 days after total thyroidectomy, P < .0001). There were 4 cases of transient hypocalcemia after total thyroidectomy, but there were no nerve injuries or other in-hospital complications in either group (overall complication rate, 11%).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  For pediatric thyroidectomy and thyroid lobectomy, collaboration of high-volume endocrine and pediatric surgeons as well as pediatric endocrinologists at a dedicated pediatric medical center provides optimal surgical outcomes.
authors: Department of Surgery, University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine, Aurora, CO, USA.
authors: James H
authors: JH
authors: Wood
authors: David A
authors: DA
authors: Partrick
authors: Henry P
authors: HP
authors: Barham
authors: Denis D
authors: DD
authors: Bensard
authors: Sharon H
authors: SH
authors: Travers
authors: Jennifer L
authors: JL
authors: Bruny
authors: Robert C
authors: RC
authors: McIntyre