Respiratory distress caused by radioiodine therapy in patients with differentiated thyroid cancer
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Updated: Jul 19, 2026

Identification and Protection of the Recurrent Laryngeal Nerve during Transoral Robotic Thyroidectomy
Published on: October 24, 2025
Seigo Kinuya1, Kunihiko Yokoyama, Takatoshi Michigishi
1Department of Biotracer Medicine, Kanazawa University Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Ishikawa, Japan. kinuya@med.kanazawa-u.ac.jp
Abstract:
Respiratory distress accompanied by stridor is an uncommon complication of 131I radioiodine therapy for differentiated thyroid cancer that occurs within 48 hours of treatment. This report presents three cases with papillary thyroid carcinoma in which 131I therapy caused this acute complication. One of them had no apparent risk for this complication such as the existence of remnant thyroid tissue or laryngeal problems before the treatment. These cases remind physicians that 131I therapy is not a simple, riskless procedure.
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