Subacute thyroiditis (SAT) is an uncommon, self-lemiting inflammatory disorder. If clinicians cannot rule out thyroid cancer in SAT patients with a thyroid nodule, surgical management can be considered. This study was performed to review the clinical characteristics of patients who were treated surgically for SAT presenting with thyroid nodule.

We retrospectively reviewed the clinical features of 14 cases who underwent an operation for SAT with a thyroid nodule between January 1986 and May 2006 at our institution.

There were 3 male and 11 female patients, with a mean age of 47 years. All patients underwent surgical management prior to 1998. Twelve patients had thyroidal pain, 6 had viral prodromal symptoms, and 5 had hyperthyroidisms. Preoperative erythrocyte sedimentation rates (ESRs) (n=4) were elevated in 3 patients. Decreased uptake of radioiodine was reported in all 6 patients for whom scans were performed (n=6). Fine needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) was performed in 4. In this study, the operative indications were clinically indeterminate thyroid nodule (n=14); lobectomy in 8, lobectomy with partial thyroidectomy in 2, lobectomy with near total thyroidectomy in 2, and bilateral total thyroidectomy in 2. Hoarseness occurred in one patient.

SAT is usually managed clinically, but patients presenting with an indeterminate thyroid nodule will require surgical management even though they may have more benign characteristics. Most surgeons have to wait for the results of frozen biopsy because limited resectioning can be performed if the results are benign.