Surgical treatment of thyrotoxicosis in children and adolescents.

l Forty-one children and adolescents had thyroidectomies for Grave’s disease during an 8 yr period. Twenty patients became euthyroid within a short period after treatment with antithyroid drugs and had operations with minimal ditruption of their lives. Antithyroid drugs were administered to 20 patients for a longer period of time as a primary form of treatment for Grave’s disease. Complications resulting from drug toxicity, poor cooperation by patients, and persistent goiters were indications for thyroidectomier in this group. Permanent remissions, after prolonged antithyroid drug therapy, are rare in children. Because the treatment is associated with significant morbidity, this form of therapy is unacceptable in most cases. Iodine-131 was given to 30 children or adolescents for Grave’s disease during the same time period. Iodine-131 is primarily indicated for patients who are resistant or allergic to antithyroid drugs,