“…The long term results after subtotal thyroidectomy show that euthyroidism may be achieved in about 60% of patients, while hypothyroidism and recurrence rarely exceed 20%-30% and 2%-15%, respectively (5,14,17,18,22). Neither a predictive index of activity of the disease nor a particular surgical technique can guarantee euthyroidism postoperatively (3,5,7,10,12,14,16,19,21,26,29). Some authors have suggested that total thyroidectomy is the definitive treatment of Graves' disease, given that it avoids recurrence and the high rate of complications associated with reoperation (15,23).…”