PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Ryu, Chang Hwan
AU  - Ryu, Junsun
AU  - Ryu, Youn Mi
AU  - Lee, You Jin
AU  - Lee, Eun-Kyung
AU  - Kim, Seok-Ki
AU  - Kim, Tae-Sung
AU  - Kim, Tae Hyun
AU  - Lee, Chang Yoon
AU  - Park, Seog Yun
AU  - Chung, Ki Wook
AU  - Jung, Yuh-S.
TI  - Administration of Radioactive Iodine Therapy Within 1 Year After Total Thyroidectomy Does Not Affect Vocal Function
AID  - 10.2967/jnumed.115.161463
DP  - 2015 Oct 01
TA  - Journal of Nuclear Medicine
PG  - 1480--1486
VI  - 56
IP  - 10
4099  - http://jnm.snmjournals.org/content/56/10/1480.short
4100  - http://jnm.snmjournals.org/content/56/10/1480.full
SO  - J Nucl Med2015 Oct 01; 56
AB  - The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of radioactive iodine therapy (RIT) on vocal function during the early follow-up period after total thyroidectomy (TT) using perceptive and objective measurements, questionnaires regarding subjective symptoms, and data on vocal function in a prospectively enrolled and serially followed thyroid cancer cohort. Methods: Of 212 patients who underwent TT and were screened between January and December 2010 at our hospital, 160 were included in the final analysis. Patients with the following histories were excluded: lateral neck dissection, organic vocal fold disease, external radiotherapy, and voice evaluation during thyroxine withdrawal. Patients were stratified into 3 groups: TT, TT with low-dose RIT (1.1–2.2 GBq), and TT with high-dose RIT (≥3.7 GBq). Voice evaluations were performed before surgery and at 1, 6, and 12 mo after TT. Results: Vocal characteristics were altered after TT, including changes on the grade, roughness, and strain scale; increased amplitude perturbation; decreased fundamental frequency; narrowed pitch range; and global disturbances in subjective functional parameters on the voice handicap index. However, the degree of vocal changes among the 3 groups did not significantly differ within the 1-y postoperative follow-up period. According to the results of subgroup analyses of patients who demonstrated good voice outcomes after TT, there were no significant functional differences among the 3 groups. Conclusion: RIT at any dose does not affect vocal function within 1 y of TT.