Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33160350›Full record

ArticleBMC surgery2020

Can thyroidectomy be considered safe in obese patients? A retrospective cohort study.

Gian Luigi Canu, Fabio Medas, Federico Cappellacci, Michele Guido Podda, Giorgio Romano, Enrico Erdas, Pietro Giorgio Calò

Open access · goldAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in BMC surgery, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 14 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
14citing papers in PubMed
2.0field-weighted citation impact, top 13% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

14 citing papers in PubMed, 20 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Review
  2. Article
  3. BMI threshold associates with increased 30-day complications after total thyroidectomy surgery.European archives of oto-rhino-laryngology : official journal of the European Federation of Oto-Rhino-Laryngological Societies (EUFOS) : affiliated with the German Society for Oto-Rhino-Laryngology - Head and Neck Surgery · 2026
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Gian Luigi CanuDepartment of Surgical Sciences, University of Cagliari, "Policlinico Universitario Duilio Casula", 09042, Monserrato, CA, Italy. gianlu_5@hotmail.it.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3233-0269
Fabio MedasDepartment of Surgical Sciences, University of Cagliari, "Policlinico Universitario Duilio Casula", 09042, Monserrato, CA, Italy.
Federico CappellacciDepartment of Surgical Sciences, University of Cagliari, "Policlinico Universitario Duilio Casula", 09042, Monserrato, CA, Italy.
Michele Guido PoddaDepartment of Surgical Sciences, University of Cagliari, "Policlinico Universitario Duilio Casula", 09042, Monserrato, CA, Italy.
Giorgio RomanoDepartment of Surgical, Oncological and Oral Sciences, Section of General and Urgent Surgery, University of Palermo, 90127, Palermo, Italy.
Enrico ErdasDepartment of Surgical Sciences, University of Cagliari, "Policlinico Universitario Duilio Casula", 09042, Monserrato, CA, Italy.
Pietro Giorgio CalòDepartment of Surgical Sciences, University of Cagliari, "Policlinico Universitario Duilio Casula", 09042, Monserrato, CA, Italy.
University of Cagliari · ITUniversity of Palermo · IT

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundObesity is a growing public health concern in most western countries. More and more patients with high body mass index (BMI) are undergoing surgical procedures of all kinds and, in this context, obese patients are undergoing thyroid surgery more than ever before. The aim of the present study was to evaluate whether thyroidectomy can be considered safe in obese patients.

methodsPatients undergoing thyroidectomy in our Unit between January 2014 and December 2018 were retrospectively analysed. Patients were divided into two groups: those with BMI < 30 kg/m

resultsA total of 813 patients were included in this study: 31 (3.81%) were underweight, 361 (44.40%) normal-weight, 286 (35.18%) overweight, 94 (11.57%) obese and 41 (5.04%) morbidly obese. Six hundred and seventy-eight patients were included in Group A and 135 in Group B. At univariate analysis, the comparison between the two groups, in terms of operative time and thyroid weight resulted in statistically significant results (P = 0.001, P = 0.008; respectively). These features were significantly higher in Group B than in Group A. About postoperative stay and complications, no statistically significant difference was found between the two groups. At multivariate analyses, only the development of cervical haematoma was statistically significantly correlated to the BMI value. Patients with high BMI had a lower risk of cervical haematoma (P = 0.045, OR 0.797, 95% CI 0.638-0.995).

conclusionsThis study showed that obesity, in the field of thyroid surgery, is not associated with any increase of postoperative complications. Thus, it is possible to conclude that thyroidectomy can be performed safely in obese patients. Our result about operative times had no clinical significance.

Indexed as

ThyroidectomyAdultAgedBody Mass IndexFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedObesityOverweightRetrospective StudiesThinnessThyroid DiseasesTreatment OutcomeBMIBody mass indexComplicationsEndocrine surgeryObesityThyroidectomy

Identifiers

PMID33160350
PMCPMC7648980
OpenAlexW3096814050

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.