Prophylactic central compartment neck dissection for papillary thyroid cancer.

Prophylactic central compartment neck dissection (pCCND) is a CCND in patients with thyroid cancer who have no clinical, sonographic, or intraoperative evidence of abnormal lymph nodes. Whether pCCND should be performed in all patients with clinically node-negative papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) is controversial. Existing data reveal that for patients with clinically node-negative PTC there is no difference between treatment with total thyroidectomy plus pCCND and total thyroidectomy alone. The potential increased risk of hypoparathyroidism associated with CCND is not offset by any measurable oncologic benefit. Risk/benefit balance favors total thyroidectomy alone for patients with clinically node-negative PTC.