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Updated: Jul 18, 2025
An Ex vivo Culture System to Study Thyroid Development
Published on: June 6, 2014
Oxidized cellulose-based reaction mimicking thyroidal recurrence of disease: a case report and literature review
Carlotta Liberale1, Erika Segato1, Andrea Sacchetto2
1Unit of Otorhinolaryngology, Head & Neck Department, University of Verona, Piazzale L.A. Scuro, 10, Verona, VR 37134 Italy.
Abstract:
Oxidized cellulose is a hemostatic agent currently used in surgery. Foreign body reactions have been described after its use. This paper describes a foreign body reaction caused by oxidized cellulose in a young woman who underwent thyroid surgery. A patient underwent two thyroid surgeries for treatment of papillary carcinoma. Five years after the last surgery, an asymptomatic mass was detected with a routine ultrasound in the left thyroid cavity. After surgical removal, the mass turned out to be a foreign body granuloma based on oxidized cellulose sheets used in the previous surgery. The patient was discharged from the hospital without complications. The follow-up period was uneventful. Oxidized cellulose is a useful tool in surgery to control and prevent intra and post-operative bleeding. Even if it is a biodegradable material, sometimes it persists in the human body causing foreign body reactions that can be misdiagnosed.
Supplementary Information:
The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12070-023-03556-0.
