[Substernal goiter: diagnosis and therapeutic problems]

ABSTRACT

Sudsternal goiter has particular nosological, diagnostic and therapeutic problems. This study is to study the epidemiologic and clinical particularities of this disease and to emphasize on therapeutic problems essentially surgical management. We report a retrospective study about 25 cases of substernal goiter operated in the Rabta hospital between January 1996 and December 2005. The mean age at operation was 61 years and sex-ratio was 0, 5. Patients were almost symptomatic. Surgery was carried by cervicotomy in all but one ease in which sternotomy was necessary. Histological exam didn't find any mailgnity signs in 95.6%of cases. Substernal goiter surgery is more delicat than the cervical one. Accurate diagnosis leads to good surgical results: