Introduction:

differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) is the most common endocrine neoplasm, with an increasing incidence worldwide. Total thyroidectomy (TT) is one of the main pillars of treatment; however, it is not without complications. The most frequent complications include transient/permanent hypoparathyroidism, recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) injury, and postoperative hemorrhage.

Objective:

to determine the prevalence of overweight and obesity in this population, as well as some risk factors for this type of tumor. Additionally, to assess the incidence of postoperative complications following TT as an initial treatment for DTC.

Materials and methods:

an observational, descriptive, retrospective study was conducted in the Endocrinology and Metabolism Academic Unit between 2011 and 2021. Quantitative variables were represented using mean and median, while qualitative variables were described with absolute frequency and percentage distribution.

Results:

among the patients, 34 % were smokers, 39 % were overweight, 30 % were obese, 7 % had a family history of thyroid cancer, and 2 % had a history of head and neck radiation. Postoperative complications were observed in 59 % of the sample (71 events in 60 patients). The most common complication was transient hypoparathyroidism, present in 48 % of cases, followed by permanent hypoparathyroidism in 8,9 %. RLN injury occurred in 8 % of patients, 3 % experienced bleeding, and one patient developed a cervical hematoma.

Conclusions:

the prevalence of overweight/obesity was high, affecting more than half of the sample, and smoking was present in one-third of the patients. Postoperative complications were common, with transient hypoparathyroidism being the most frequent, followed by permanent hypoparathyroidism. RLN injury, surgical site hemorrhage, and cervical hematoma occurred less frequently.

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