Frequency of Thyroid Lesions in a Tertiary Care Hospital in Peshawar

Abstract

Objective: To determine the frequency spectrum of all thyroid lesions in terms of histopathological patterns presented to the Pathology Department of the Combined Military Hospital Peshawar. Methodology: A retrospective observational study was conducted at the Combined Military Hospital, Peshawar, from September 2015 to December 2020. A total of 235 thyroidectomy specimens, over a period of 5 years, were included in the study period. Information was collected on age, gender, clinical presentation, and histopathological diagnosis. Results: A total of 235 cases were studied over a period of five years, of which 188 (80%) were females and 47 (20%) were males, with a male to female ratio of 1:4. The patients’ ages ranged from 14 years to 85 years, with a mean age of 41 years, and the relative peak age of incidence was seen from 21 to 40 years of age. Total 193 cases (82.1%) belonged to the non-neoplastic category out of which adenomatous colloid goiter was the most common (180 cases, 93.3%). The neoplastic lesions (total cases 42) were 17.9% of all of the cases, out of which benign lesions i.e. adenoma comprised 20 cases (47.7%) and malignant lesions were 22 (52.3%). Among the malignant lesions papillary carcinoma was the most common (16 cases) comprising of 73% of all of the malignant lesions. Conclusion: Thyroid lesions are more common in females, with peak incidence in the second and third decades. The non-neoplastic lesions are more common, with the adenomatous goiter being most prevalent. In the neoplastic lesions, follicular adenoma constitutes the main lesion in the group of benign neoplasms and papillary carcinoma being the most common lesion among the malignant neoplasms.