[The effectiveness of recurrence prophylaxis four to five years after struma surgery].

Four to five years after the operation of an endemic goiter, 63% of the patients regularly take thyroxin prophylactically and 85% as substitution. The effect of this hormone therapy was checked using the radioiodine uptake of the thyroid. In those patients with an increase in the size of the thyroid in the scintigram, there was usually a pathological TRH-TSH test with elevated basal and very elevated late values for TSH. While the prophylactic benefit of thyroxin after unilateral thyroidectomy must be further evaluated with other parameters, there is no doubt that thyroxin is necessary for those patients in whom a bilateral thyroidectomy has been performed.