Complications after total thyroidectomy

A retrospective review of 64 total thyroidectomies performed at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center was conducted. Only one patient had permanent hypocalcemia (1.6%) requiring calcium supplementation. Eight patients had a total of 11 complications, for a complication rate of 12.5%. These results are in sharp contrast to those published in 1972 from this institution, in which the permanent hypocalcemia rate was 29%. The reasons for this difference are discussed.