Table 1.
Total thyroidectomy in children: descriptive statistics
| No permanent hypoparathyroidism (n = 254, 93%) | Permanent hypoparathyroidism (n = 20, 7%) | p | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age | 15 (13–17) | 13 (10–16) | 0.09 |
| Sex | |||
| Male | 199 (78) | 16 (80) | |
| Female | 55 (22) | 4 (20) | 0.86 |
| Type of thyroid disease | |||
| Benigna | 25 (10) | 2 (10) | |
| Thyrotoxicosis | 199 (78) | 15 (75) | |
| Malignant | 30 (12) | 3 (15) | 0.91 |
| Preoperative calcium level (mmol/L) (reference 2.20–250 mmol/L) | 2.37 (2.29–2.44) | 2.37 (2.23–2.44) | 0.97 |
| Number of identified parathyroid glands | |||
| 0 | 1 (0) | 0 (0) | |
| 1 | 9 (4) | 1 (5) | |
| 2 | 53 (21) | 6 (30) | |
| 3 | 90 (35) | 6 (30) | |
| 4 or more | 101 (40) | 7 (35) | 0.88 |
| Parathyroid re-implantation | |||
| No | 160 (63) | 12 (60) | |
| Yes | 94 (37) | 8 (40) | 0.79 |
| Lymph node surgery | |||
| No | 218 (86) | 18 (90) | |
| Yes | 36 (14) | 2 (10) | 0.60 |
| Operation time (min) | |||
| <120 | 67 (26) | 6 (30) | |
| 120–180 | 103 (41) | 5 (25) | |
| >180 | 26 (10) | 6 (30) | |
| Not reported | 58 (23) | 3 (15) | 0.047 |
| Thyroid specimen weight, grams | |||
| <25 | 51 (20) | 6 (30) | |
| 25–50 | 83 (33) | 2 (10) | |
| >50 | 47 (18) | 5 (25) | |
| Not reported | 73 (29) | 7 (35) | 0.20 |
| Serum calcium at discharge (mmol/L)b | 2.11 (2.00–2.23) | 1.78 (1.63–1.98) | <0.001 |
| Serum calcium at 6 weeks (mmol/L) | 2.34 (2.28–2.40) | 2.14 (2.12–2.21) | <0.001 |
| Hospital stay (days) | 1 (0–2) | 2 (0–4) | 0.40 |
| Hospital volume | |||
| Low (<50) | 33 (13) | 4 (20) | |
| Median (50–100) | 40 (16) | 3 (15) | |
| High (>100) | 181 (72) | 13 (65) | 0.68 |
N (column percent) and Chi-square or Fishers exact where appropriate; median (IQR) and Mann–Whitney or Wilcoxon rank sum test
aBenign neoplasm and multinodular colloid goiter
bReference range 2.20–2.50 mmol/L