New study compares two surgical approaches to endoscopic thyroid removal

Reviewed by James Ives, M.Psych. (Editor)Oct 30 2019

A new study compares two surgical approaches to endoscopic thyroid removal, neither of which produces a scar in the neck area, providing a comprehensive comparison of the therapeutic effects and cosmetic results of each approach.

The study, which compares the scarless oral vestibular approach with the breast approach is published in Journal of Laparoendoscopic & Advanced Surgical Techniques (JLAST), a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers.

The article entitled "Comparative Study Between Endoscopic Thyroid Surgery via the Oral Vestibular Approach and the Areola Approach" was coauthored by Yong Wang, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University College of Medicine, and colleagues from The Affiliated Zhongshan Hospital of Dalian University and Dezhou People's Hospital of Shandong Province, China.

In the transoral endoscopy thyroidectomy via the vestibular approach (TOETVA), the thyroid gland is removed through an incision made in the mouth, leaving behind no visible scar. In the breast approach, the incision is made in the areola.

The researchers found no significant differences between the two approaches across a range of variables, including operative time, intraoperative blood loss, total postoperative drainage, postoperative persistent pain, postoperative hospitalization, and complications rate.

They concluded that both methods are safe and effective, but the oral vestibular approach had a better cosmetic effect because it left no scar.