THE EFFECTS OF THIOURACIL ON THE THYROID GLAND

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Abstract
Thiouracil was used to prepare patients for operation much as iodine has been used. Thiouracil was generally administered over a relatively short period of time and following the operation the excised glands were studied. The gland of a thyrotoxic patient prepared with thiouracil was generally wet, vascular and friable and offered more technical difficulties than the I prepared gland. Microscopically the acini were lined by tall pale cells, often occluding the lumen, and whose large nuclei were toward the center of the cell. The acini contained little or no colloid. The gland exhibited marked hyperplasia and resembled the appearance of the gland removed before I therapy came into use. When I was used either shortly before or after thiouracil, the thiouracil effect was masked histologically and the gland resembled the appearance of the ordinary I prepared gland. Thiouracil seemed to have no effect on the gland that resembled simple non-toxic goiter. In very sick patients prepared with thiouracil, the postoperative course may be stormy. I is considered the drug of choice thus far in the prepn. of the avg. thyrotoxic patient for operation.