Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2024 Mar 20;36(1):38-42.
doi: 10.4314/mmj.v36i1.6. eCollection 2024 Mar.

Clinical features and Surgical Outcomes of Thyroid Goitre Presenting to Ear, Nose and Throat Department of Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital, Blantyre, Malawi

Michel Tohadi Ahoka  1 , Wakisa Mulwafu  1
Affiliations

Clinical features and Surgical Outcomes of Thyroid Goitre Presenting to Ear, Nose and Throat Department of Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital, Blantyre, Malawi

Michel Tohadi Ahoka et al. Malawi Med J. .

Abstract

Introduction: In Malawi there is a perception that goitre is common and causes significant public health and economic burdens. The purpose of this study was to assess the demographic distribution, clinical presentation, investigations, management, outcomes and complications of goitre seen at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital (QECH), Blantyre, Malawi.

Method: A single hospital-based descriptive retrospective study from January 2017 to December 2018 for all patients presenting with goitre.

Results: Out of 9073 patients who presented to ENT department, 105 patients presented with goitre representing 1% of all patients seen during the study period. The Male: Female ratio was 1:25. The mean symptom duration with goitre was 4 years (SD +/- 6.4). Thyroid function test results were available in 54 patients and out of these, 53(98%) patients were euthyroid. Ultrasound scan (USS) reports were available in 44 patients, of these 32(73%) were multinodular goitres. In 70 cases, pathology results were available and showed that 20% were thyroid cancers and that papillary thyroid carcinoma was the commonest cancer (64%). Two recurrent laryngeal nerve injuries were recorded in 79 surgical procedures representing 2.5% of patients (6.3% overall complication rate). Inpatient stay ranged from 2 days to 49 days (median 3 days).

Conclusion: Goitre at our centre is more common in women than in men. One in five patients in this cohort had thyroid cancers. This prevalence is higher than other areas in the world highlighting the need for cytology services on every patient before surgery and histology services after surgery. Recurrent laryngeal nerve injury and other complications were infrequent demonstrating local high safety of thyroid surgery, despite late presentation to the ENT department.

Keywords: Goitre; cytology; thyroid cancer; thyroid gland; thyroid neoplasm.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flow Chart Showing Eligibility, Exclusion and Enrolment
Figure 2
Figure 2
Types of Thyroid Cancers
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Sanjeeva KK, Chandra B, Balakrishna MA, Ramesh DB. Clinico-epidemiological study and treatment outcome of multinodular goitre at a tertiary care hospital. Journal of clinical and diagnostic research: JCDR. 2015 Jun;9(6):PC22. Pages 22-24. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Lebastchi Amir H, Callender Glenda G. Thyroid Cancer. Curr Probl Cancer. 2014. Available from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24951026/ - PubMed
    1. Nagataki S, Nyström E. Epidemiology and primary prevention of thyroid cancer. Thyroid. 2002 Oct 1;12(10):889–896. - PubMed
    1. Zheng R, Rios-Diaz AJ, Thibault DP, Crispo JA, Willis AW, Willis AI. A contemporary analysis of Goitres undergoing surgery in the United States. The American Journal of Surgery. 2020. Jan 8, Pages 1,2. - PubMed
    1. Chaudhary M, Baisakhiya N, Singh G. Clinicopathological and Radiological Study of Thyroid Swelling. Indian Journal of Otolaryngology and Head & Neck Surgery. 2019 Oct 1;71(1):893–904. Page 1. - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources