Outpatient thyroid and parathyroid surgery: a prospective study of feasibility, safety, and costs

The purpose of this study was to determine feasibility, safety, and cost savings of outpatient thyroid and parathyroid surgery.

Consecutive unselected patients undergoing thyroid and parathyroid operations by two surgeons with a special interest in endocrine surgery were studied prospectively.

One-hundred patients underwent operation, 61 as outpatients and 39 as inpatients. Outpatients included those undergoing thyroid lobectomy (39), total thyroidectomy (10), total thyroidectomy with parathyroidectomy (1), total thyroidectomy with modified neck dissection (1), and parathyroidectomy (10). Inpatients included those undergoing thyroid lobectomy (15), total thyroidectomy (8), total thyroidectomy with neck dissection (4), removal of substernal goiter (2), and parathyroidectomy (10). The average age of inpatients was slightly higher than that of outpatients (p < 0.05). Average hospital cost for outpatients was $1991 +/- $279 (range, $1594 to $2783) and for inpatients it was $2875 +/- 615 (range, $2031 to $4216), p < 0.001. Reasons for admission included extent of surgery (6), nausea (5), oversedation (4), urinary retention (2), inadequate home help (6), long travel time (2), patient preference (9), and medical reasons (5). No outpatients subsequently required admission.

Outpatient thyroid and parathyroid surgery can be feasible and safe and resulted in a 30% savings in hospital costs. After extensive operations patients continue to require admission for postanesthetic complications, social reasons, or presence of serious comorbid disease.