Outcome of antithyroid treatment or subtotal thyroidectomy in relapsed Graves' disease

The results of 1-10 year follow-up after antithyroid treatment or subtotal thyroidectomy in 115 patients with Graves’ disease relapsed following treatment were reported The remission rates in 49 patients after second course of antithyroid treatment were 50% at 2 years, 32% at 5 Years and 22.2% at 10 years, which were lower than those in 266 patients with Graves’ disease after first course of antithyroid treatment. The remission rates in 66 patients after subtotal thyroidectomy were 96.8% at 2 years, 92% at 5 years and 85.2% at 10 years, which were similar to those in 70 patients with Graves’ disease after subtotal thyroidectomy as initial treatment. The results revealed that patients with Graves’ disease relapsed after antithyroid treatment have poorer prognosis if they continued to receive antithyroid treatment. Thereby, it is better for them to take subtotal thyroidectomy or radioactive iodine therapy.