Emergency Total Thyroidectomy for Giant Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma Presenting With Acute Airway Obstruction: Management in the Setting of Thyrotoxicosis

Giant goiters can lead to tracheal compression with acute respiratory failure. We present a case with a giant goiter as well as acute respiratory failure, which required urgent surgery. We report the case of a 36-year-old female patient who presented to the emergency room with a giant goiter, which had been present for 12 years and had become compressive for one month, as well as laryngeal dyspnea. For this compressive goiter, she benefited from an emergency thyroidectomy. After histological analysis of the specimen, it was found to be cancerous. Giant goiters can cause compression of the critical structures of the neck. In cases of compressive goiter, dyspnea is the most common sign of compression and can constitute a life-threatening emergency requiring emergency thyroidectomy. Multi-nodular goiter and thyroid cancers are the two main etiologies found in the literature to be responsible for acute dyspnea due to tracheal compression. Emergency thyroidectomy is the appropriate treatment for asphyxial goiter.