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Biomedicines
Volume 13
Issue 6
10.3390/biomedicines13061404
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This is an early access version, the complete PDF, HTML, and XML versions will be available soon.
Review

The Impact of Radioiodine (131I) Therapy of Thyroid Disease on Salivary Glands Function and Inflammation: A Comprehensive Review

by
Pietro Bellini
1,*,
Francesco Dondi
1,2,
Carlo Cappelli
3,4,
Elisa Gatta
3,4,
Davide Lombardi
5,
Claudio Casella
6,
Riccardo Morandi
6,
Gianluca Viganò
7,
Luca Camoni
1,
Michela Cossandi
1,
Valentina Zilioli
1 and
Francesco Bertagna
1,2
1
Nuclear Medicine, ASST Spedali Civili di Brescia, 25123 Brescia, Italy
2
Nuclear Medicine, Università degli Studi di Brescia, 25123 Brescia, Italy
3
Department of Clinical and Experimental Sciences, SSD Endocrinologia, Università degli Studi di Brescia and ASST Spedali Civili di Brescia, 25123 Brescia, Italy
4
Centro per la Diagnosi e Cura delle Neoplasie Endocrine e delle Malattie della Tiroide, Università degli Studi di Brescia, 25121 Brescia, Italy
5
Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, ASST Spedali Civili di Brescia, 25123 Brescia, Italy
6
Surgical Clinic, Università degli Studi di Brescia and ASST Spedali Civili di Brescia, 25123 Brescia, Italy
7
Clinical Engineering, ASST Spedali Civili di Brescia, 25123 Brescia, Italy
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Biomedicines 2025, 13(6), 1404; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines13061404 (registering DOI)
Submission received: 27 April 2025 / Revised: 2 June 2025 / Accepted: 5 June 2025 / Published: 7 June 2025
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Thyroid Disease: From Mechanism to Therapeutic Approaches)
Versions Notes

Abstract

Radioactive iodine therapy has been a well-established treatment for various thyroid conditions since the 1940s, targeting both benign diseases and malignancies. Treatment for benign conditions typically involves low doses of 131I, often requiring no more than two treatments, with the dose either fixed or personalized based on thyroid tissue mass and iodine uptake. In contrast, differentiated thyroid cancer treatment often requires higher doses and multiple administrations, especially for metastatic cases. Recent guidelines and studies have proposed more conservative management strategies, including careful follow-up, due to concerns over the high risk–benefit ratio in selected cases with a low risk of disease recrudescence. Despite its possible efficacy, radioiodine therapy is associated with dose-dependent side effects, the most common of which is salivary gland dysfunction or inflammation, affecting approximately 30% of adult patients. These effects pose significant challenges in nuclear medicine practice. This review aims to summarize the latest evidence on the incidence, impact on quality of life, prevention strategies and the role of these side effects in the decision-making process regarding RAI therapy.
Keywords: thyroid cancer; salivary glands; radioiodine; side effects; xerostomy; sialadenitis thyroid cancer; salivary glands; radioiodine; side effects; xerostomy; sialadenitis

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MDPI and ACS Style

Bellini, P.; Dondi, F.; Cappelli, C.; Gatta, E.; Lombardi, D.; Casella, C.; Morandi, R.; Viganò, G.; Camoni, L.; Cossandi, M.; et al. The Impact of Radioiodine (131I) Therapy of Thyroid Disease on Salivary Glands Function and Inflammation: A Comprehensive Review. Biomedicines 2025, 13, 1404. https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines13061404

AMA Style

Bellini P, Dondi F, Cappelli C, Gatta E, Lombardi D, Casella C, Morandi R, Viganò G, Camoni L, Cossandi M, et al. The Impact of Radioiodine (131I) Therapy of Thyroid Disease on Salivary Glands Function and Inflammation: A Comprehensive Review. Biomedicines. 2025; 13(6):1404. https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines13061404

Chicago/Turabian Style

Bellini, Pietro, Francesco Dondi, Carlo Cappelli, Elisa Gatta, Davide Lombardi, Claudio Casella, Riccardo Morandi, Gianluca Viganò, Luca Camoni, Michela Cossandi, and et al. 2025. "The Impact of Radioiodine (131I) Therapy of Thyroid Disease on Salivary Glands Function and Inflammation: A Comprehensive Review" Biomedicines 13, no. 6: 1404. https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines13061404

APA Style

Bellini, P., Dondi, F., Cappelli, C., Gatta, E., Lombardi, D., Casella, C., Morandi, R., Viganò, G., Camoni, L., Cossandi, M., Zilioli, V., & Bertagna, F. (2025). The Impact of Radioiodine (131I) Therapy of Thyroid Disease on Salivary Glands Function and Inflammation: A Comprehensive Review. Biomedicines, 13(6), 1404. https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines13061404

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