Therapeutic efficiency of iodine 131 in autonomous thyroid adenoma and toxic multinodular goiter. Apropos of 59 cases

: Our study dealt with 81 patients treated by iodine 131 for autonomous goiter. We have followed 59 patients during about a year. The global therapeutic efficiency is of 73% and the risk of hypothyroidism is very weak. The administration of a high activity (greater than 15 mCi) of iodine allows to get a faster recovery, a better therapeutic efficiency and permits to reduce the number of cures (therefore, to reduce the irradiation of the patient), nevertheless, the risk of hypothyroidism is very slight. The advantages of metabolic radiotherapy (low cost, facility of administration, efficiency) make it preferable to surgery, above all with patients that are more than 40 years old, for whom the radiation risk is practically null (hereditary diseases, cancer).