The ophthalmic blood pressure in thyroidectomized patients

Abstract

A parallel investigation of the blood pressure changes in the brachial and ophthalmic arteries was carried out in a group of 23 patients following subtotal thyroidectomy, and the results were compared with those obtained in a control group of 21 patients operated on for other diseases. A pronounced decrease of the pressure in the ophthalmic artery was found in the thyroidectomized patients. It appeared immediately after surgery, lasted 2 or 3 days, and disappeared spontaneously. The pressure decrease might be correlated with the headache that is frequently encountered in patients after thyroidectomy and that occurred in 17 of the 23 thyroidectomized patients. Changes in carotid blood flow due to the patient's position on the operating table, removal of the thyroid tissue, and liberation of bradykinin are discussed as possible factors that might explain this finding.

Complications of Thyroid Surgery: How to Avoid Them, How to Manage Them, and Observations on Their Possible Effect on the Whole Patient

“…Extension should not be excessive, particularly in elderly patients with degenerative disease of the cervical spine. Apart from local pain in the neck, severe postoperative frontal or occipital headache, which may persist for several weeks before resolving, can follow hyperextension, regardless of age [9]. It is prudent to place the occiput on a soft foam "donut" to prevent unexpected side-to-side movement during surgery and to offer some support to the extended head.…”