AN UNUSUAL COMPLICATION FOLLOWING THYROIDECTOMY: HEATSTROKE WITH PERMANENT CEREBELLAR DAMAGE

Abstract

The patient was suffering from hyperthyroidism, and 2 days following the thyroidectomy the patient developed heatstroke and, subsequently, permanent cerebellar damage. The late neurologic complications of heatstroke have not been stressed sufficiently. The susceptibility of the cerebellum to extreme heat has been observed by others. Fatalities in thyrotoxic crises may, in certain instances, be explained on the basis of heatstroke. A fever in a patient under observation for thyrotoxicosis, regardless of its etiology, has serious implications, and antipyretic measures should be available.