Outpatient Thyroid Surgery Data from the University Health System (UHC) Consortium

Objective. Describe data from patients undergoing outpatient thyroid surgeries for benign and malignant disease at academic medical centers in the United States. Study Design. Retrospective database search. Setting. The University Health System Consortium (UHC), Oak Brook, Illinois, data compiled from discharge summaries. Subjects and Methods. Discharge data were collected from the first quarter of 2005 through the fourth quarter of 2010. Searching strategy was based on diagnosis of thyroid disease and patients undergoing thyroid surgery across all UHC facilities. Demographic information was collected as well as charges. Complications were also evaluated in this analysis. Results. During the study period, 38,362 outpatient thyroidectomies were performed from our sample, 32% for thyroid cancer. More total thyroidectomies (43%) and fewer hemithyroidectomies (36%) were being performed overall; 64.1% of patients stayed 23 hours. Conclusion. This is one of the largest series reporting outcomes for outpatient thyroid surgery. Since these surgeries appear to be shifting to an outpatient setting, this report reflects the experience with the majority of endocrine surgeries from the UHC database being performed presently. These results are derived from teaching hospitals and their affiliates and may not reflect the entirety of thyroid surgery in the United States.