Influencing Factors of Hypoparathyroidism After Thyroidectomy in Children

Objective: Hypoparathyroidism (HP) is the most common complication after total thyroidectomy. The purpose of this study was to summarize the recovery of HP in children after total thyroidectomy for thyroid cancer and to explore the related influencing factors. Methods: HP was identified in children who underwent total thyroidectomy for thyroid cancer between 2016 and 2020. Clinical characteristics, tumor stage, intraoperative parathyroid identification, and protection, lymph node metastasis, etc, were retrospectively analyzed. All patients were followed up for more than 1 year, and the recovery time of the parathyroid gland was recorded. The independent risk factors for HP recovery were determined by multivariate regression analysis. Results: In 121 cases of total thyroidectomy for thyroid cancer, 34 cases (28.1%) of HP occurred after surgery. The average age was 10.34 ± 3.01. Twenty-five cases of pattern of parathyroid hormone (PTH; 73.5%) recovered within half a year after surgery, 2 cases (5.9%) recovered after 1 year, and 2 cases (5.9%) were still not recovered after 2 years of follow-up. Univariate analysis suggested that PTH ≤ 1 on the first day after surgery and bilateral VI region lymph node metastasis were risk factors affecting the recovery of HP ( P < .05). Multivariate regression analysis showed that PTH≤1 on the first day after surgery was an independent risk factor for HP recovery (OR = 0.092, 95% CI: 0.009-0.966, P = .047). Conclusion: Bilateral central lymph node metastasis and PTH ≤ 1 on the first day after surgery were the risk factors for HP recovery. In addition, HP may still recover more than 6 months after surgery, so the timing of diagnosis of permanent HP still needed to be discussed.