Short account of the history of thyroid surgery

Historical writings have described abnormalities of the thyroid gland for more than 3500 years. The relationship between the thyroid gland and goiter has been unknown until the XX century. Originally, what we know today as goiter was described as bronchocele. It was Wharton who in 1656 named the gla...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Annali italiani di chirurgia Vol. 76; no. 1; p. 5
Main Authors:	Vieni, S, Latteri, S, Lo Dico, R
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	Italian
Published:	Italy 01-01-2005
Subjects:	Europe Goiter - history Goiter - surgery History, 15th Century History, 16th Century History, 17th Century History, 18th Century History, 19th Century History, 20th Century History, Ancient History, Medieval Humans Thyroidectomy - history Europe
Online Access:	Get more information
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Summary:	Historical writings have described abnormalities of the thyroid gland for more than 3500 years. The relationship between the thyroid gland and goiter has been unknown until the XX century. Originally, what we know today as goiter was described as bronchocele. It was Wharton who in 1656 named the gland "thyroid", not because of the shape of the gland but because of the proximity to the thyroid cartilage. Rare attempts at thyroidectomy were made early on primarily for prevention of suffocation secondary to goiter with little success and a mortality rate as high as 40%. In 1791, Desault performed the first successful partial thyroidectomy. The most notable surgeon of 20th-century was Emil Theodore Kocher, who is considered the father of thyroid surgery. Christian Albert Theodor Billroth also made significant contributions to thyroid surgery.
ISSN:	0003-469X