RESUMO
Substernal goiters are rare but needs to be anatomically well defined. From 1986 to 1996, we collect retrospectivelly 35 patients [28F/7M], with a median age of 48 years affected by substernal goiters and revealed by an isolated cervical mass in 68.5% of cases. Diagnosis has been based on chest- X Ray [35/35], Technitium scintigraphy [35/35], US [16/38] or CT-Scan [6/35]. Resection was done for all the patients by an exclusive cervical way. Surgical was complicated by 4 transitory hypocalcemia and 4 recurrent palsies which 2 are definitive. We propose a more anatomically precise definition of substernal goiters i.e descending more than 4 cm in substernal when patients are in operative position. In most of the cases, cervical way alone permit a safe resection of both thyroid lesion and its mediastinal extension