Thyroidectomy Complications in Patients with Diabetes Mellitus

ObjectiveTo (1) analyze postoperative thyroidectomy outcomes in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM), who are prone to deleterious effects of glucose dysmetabolism, and (2) apply findings to optimize perioperative management of diabetics requiring thyroid surgery.Study DesignRetrospective database analysis.SettingUniversity hospital.Subjects and MethodsThe National Inpatient Sample was queried using International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification and Procedure Coding System (PCS) codes for patients with benign or malignant thyroid disease who underwent thyroid surgery between 2002 and 2013. An analysis of demographics, comorbidities, and postoperative outcomes was conducted between a DM vs non-DM cohort using bivariate and multivariate techniques.ResultsIn total, 103,842 cases met inclusion criteria; 14.2% were diabetics. Diabetics had significantly higher rates of baseline comorbid chronic pulmonary disease, hypertension, obesity, and anemia. Following thyroidectomy, patie...