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By Mayo Clinic staffAfter a thyroidectomy, you may experience neck pain and a hoarse or weak voice. This doesn't necessarily mean there's permanent damage to the nerve that controls your vocal cords. These symptoms are often temporary and may be due to irritation from the breathing tube (endotracheal tube) that's inserted into your windpipe (trachea) during surgery, or as a result of nerve irritation — but not permanent damage — caused by the surgery.
The long-term effects of thyroidectomy depend on how much of the thyroid is removed. If only part of your thyroid is removed, the remaining portion typically takes over the function of the entire thyroid gland, and you don't need thyroid hormone therapy.
If your entire thyroid is removed, your body can't make thyroid hormone and you'll develop signs and symptoms of underactive thyroid (hypothyroidism). As a result, you'll need to take a pill every day that contains the thyroid hormone thyroxine (levothyroxine). This hormone replacement is identical to the hormone normally made by your thyroid gland and performs all of the same functions. Your doctor will determine the amount of thyroid hormone replacement you need based on blood tests.
- Lal G, et al. Thyroid, parathyroid and adrenal. In: Brunicardi FC, et al. Schwartz's Principles of Surgery. 8th ed. New York, N.Y.: McGraw-Hill Companies; 2005. http://www.accessmedicine.com/content.aspx?aID=817576. Accessed May 13, 2009.
- Thyroid surgery. American Thyroid Association. http://www.thyroid.org/patients/brochures/ThyroidSurgery.pdf. Accessed May 13, 2009.
- Busaidy NL, et al. Endocrine malignancies. In: Kantarjian HM, et al. MD Anderson Manual of Medical Oncology. http://www.accessmedicine.com/content.aspx?aID=2797737. Accessed May 13, 2009.
- Tuttle RM. Surgical treatment of differentiated thyroid cancer. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed May 13, 2009.
- Lal G, et al. Endocrine surgery. In: Gardner DG, et al. Greenspan's Basic and Clinical Endocrinology. 8th ed. New York, N.Y.: McGraw-Hill Companies; 2007. http://www.accessmedicine.com/content.aspx?aID=2632048. Accessed May 13, 2009.
- Scheuller MC, et al. Malignant thyroid neoplasms. In: Lalwani AK. Current Diagnosis & Treatment in Otolaryngology — Head & Neck Surgery. 2nd ed. New York, N.Y.: McGraw-Hill Companies; 2008. http://www.accessmedicine.com/content.aspx?aID=2829354. Accessed May 13, 2009.
- Graves' disease. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. http://www.endocrine.niddk.nih.gov/pubs/graves/. Accessed May 13, 2009.
- ATA hypothyroidism booklet. American Thyroid Association. http://www.thyroid.org/patients/brochures/Hypothyroidism%20_web_booklet.pdfAccessed May 20, 2009.
