Abstract:

Objective: To evaluate the risk factors except surgery that may affect the recurrence rate of thyroglossal duct cysts (TGDCs). Material and Methods: The patients who had undergone surgery for TGDCs between 2009 and 2019 were examined. Cases operated with a technique other than the Sistrunk procedure and the revision cases were excluded from the study. Age and gender distributions, complaints, number of infectious attacks, presence of a fistula, radiological imaging, mass characteristics, surgical findings, hospitalization time, pathological examination results, and presence of complications were assessed. The effects of these parameters on the recurrence were investigated. Results: Fifty-eight patients were included in the study (43.1%, 25 females and 56.9%, 33 males). The mean age was 21.53±19.19 years (range: 2-78 years). The most common complaint was neck mass (n=49, 84.5%). Fifteen patients (25.9%) had a fistulized skin lesion. The most common location was the infrahyoid region (46.6%). The recurrence rate was found to be 13.8% (8/58). The mean recurrence time was 1.8 years. In two patients’ pathological examination revealed papillary thyroid cancer (3.4%). The recurrence rates in the patients who had pain, fistulized skin lesions, and masses located above the hyoid level were found to be statistically significant (p=0.01, p<0.01, p=0.03, respectively). Conclusion: Location of the mass, presence of pain, and fistulized skin lesions are the factors affecting the recurrence in the patients undergoing the Sistrunk procedure.

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