Thyroid surgery is also known as thyroidectomy which means the removal of all or part of the thyroid gland. In most cases, this is performed to remove a cancer, cyst, or other mass. This procedure requires general anesthesia and monitoring of nerves around the thyroid.
Often patients will need to be observed overnight in the hospital after the surgery and will need to be on thyroid hormone replacement medicine. The thyroid gland is located right on top of the nerve that is used to speak and patients may experience some hoarseness after the surgery that often resolves over the next few weeks.