title: Experience of 1166 thyroidectomy without use of prophylactic antibiotic.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Although the procedure requires a small surgical incision and a short duration, incision infection rate is very low in thyroidectomy; however, doctors still have misgivings about infection events.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  We retrospectively analyzed the prevention of incision infection without perioperative use of antibacterial medications following thyroidectomy.
  
  
  METHODS
  1166 patients of thyroidectomy were not administered perioperative antibiotics. Unilateral total lobectomy or partial thyroidectomy was performed in 68.0% patients with single-side nodular goiter or thyroid adenoma. Bilateral partial thyroidectomy was performed in 25.5% patients with nodular goiter or Graves' disease. The mean time of operation was 80.6 ± 4.87 (range: 25-390) min.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Resuturing was performed in two patients of secondary hemorrhage from residual thyroid following bilateral partial thyroidectomy. Temporally recurrent nerve paralysis was reported following right-side total lobectomy and left-side subtotal lobectomy in a nodular goiter patient. One case had suppurative infection in neck incision 5 days after bilateral partial thyroidectomy.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Thyroidectomy, which is a clean incision, involves a small incision, short duration, and minor hemorrhage. If the operation is performed under strict conditions of sterility and hemostasis, antibacterial medications may not be required to prevent incision infection, which reduces cost and discourages the excessive use of antibiotics.
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, TungWah Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Dongguan, Guangdong 523110, China.
authors.forename: Qiang
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, TungWah Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Dongguan, Guangdong 523110, China.
authors.forename: Shu-Qin
authors.initials: SQ
authors.lastname: Xie
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgical Oncology, Tung Wah Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Dongguan, Guangdong 523110, China.
authors.forename: Si-Yuan
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Operating Room Tung Wah, Tung Wah Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Dongguan, Guangdong 523110, China.
authors.forename: Li-Ju
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, TungWah Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Dongguan, Guangdong 523110, China.
authors.forename: Qian
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Qin
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D019072:Antibiotic Prophylaxis / Q000379:methods*; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019990:Perioperative Care / Q000379:methods*; D065286:Prophylactic Surgical Procedures / Q000379:methods; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013530:Surgical Wound Infection / Q000517:prevention & control*; D013965:Thyroidectomy / Q000379:methods*; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents