Mortality after benign thyroid surgery in patients aged 80 years or older

Introduction A recent report from the United Nations showed that aged people are increasing worldwide. Few data exist on overall survival for patients 80 years or older undergoing benign thyroid surgery. Short- and long-term survival and risk factors for death in patients undergoing thyroid surgery for benign disease were evaluated, using a nationwide, population-based quality register. Methods Patients operated for benign thyroid disease, 2004 to 2017, were collected from the national quality register for thyroid surgery. Mortality data were retrieved from the Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare. Mortality at 30 days, 90 days, and 1 year after surgery, for patients 80 years or older, was calculated. Overall survival was calculated using the Kaplan-Meier estimate. Risk factors for mortality were assessed with Cox's multiple regression analysis. The standardized mortality ratio was calculated. Results There were 17,969 patients. Among them, 483 patients were 80 years or older, and of these, 397 (82.2%) were women. The mortality rate at 0-30 days, 31-90 days, and at 91-365 days after surgery was 0.4%, 0.2%, and 2.5%, respectively. The median (IQR) follow-up time was 4.5 (2.9-7.2) and the median (IQR) survival time was 8.0 (4.1-12.5) years. Apart from age, there was no other risk factor for death. The standardized mortality ratio (SMR) was 0.67 (0.49-0.91) for men and 0.76 (0.65-0.89) for women. Conclusion Mortality after surgery for benign thyroid disease in patients 80 years or older was lower than the general population with no specific risk factors for death except for age.