[Indications status and surgical strategy in cold struma nodule]

Scintigraphy, sonography and fine needle cytology have the best accuracy in the evaluation of a cold nodular goitre. In 2,100 investigations on nodular goitre, it could be found that the incidence of the prophylactic operation for histological diagnosis decreased more than half. On the other hand, with the precise diagnosis the surgeon was able to perform thyroidectomy for thyroid cancer in the first operation. Thus complications of thyroidectomy (paralysis of the recurrent laryngeal nerve, tetany, residual thyroid tissue) could be reduced.