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Surgical completeness of robotic thyroidectomy: a prospective comparison with conventional open thyroidectomy in papillary thyroid carcinoma patients

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An Erratum to this article was published on 29 April 2015

An Erratum to this article was published on 11 July 2014

Abstract

Background

Using the da Vinci® robotic system, surgeons can complete secure thyroidectomy without noticeable neck scarring. This study compared the surgical completeness of transaxillary robotic thyroidectomy (RT) with conventional open procedures (OT) in treating papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) patients.

Materials and methods

From April 2009 through February 2011, 94 PTC patients underwent total thyroidectomy with central compartment neck dissection (CCND) at Yonsei University College of Medicine. All patients received 1.1 GBq radioactive iodine (RAI) ablation, post-therapy whole-body scans (TxWBS), and diagnostic WBS (DxWBS) 1 year later. We prospectively compared patient clinicopathologic characteristics and surgical completeness between the two groups.

Results

Fifty-one patients underwent OT and 43 underwent RT. Mean age was significantly younger in the RT group. Tumor size, capsular-invasion frequency, multifocality, bilaterality, and central nodal metastasis were not different between the two groups. The number of retrieved nodes during CCND did not significantly differ between the groups. There was no significant difference between the OT and RT groups in stimulated thyroglobulin levels acquired during TxWBS and DxWBS. The RAI uptake ratios at TxWBS were significantly higher in the RT group compared with the OT group; however, follow-up DxWBS showed no difference in RAI uptake ratios. Also, the ablation success rate was similar between the two groups. There were no abnormal findings in follow-up neck ultrasonography in either group.

Conclusion

Remnant thyroid tissue ablation after transaxillary RT was successfully managed by 1.1 GBq RAI. RT showed similar surgical completeness versus conventional OT, and provides a safe and feasible surgical option for PTC patients.

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Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to Dong-Su Jang (Medical Illustrator, Medical Research Support Section, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea) for his help with the figures.

Disclosures

Drs. Sohee Lee, Cho Rok Lee, Seung Chul Lee, Seulkee Park, Haiyoung Son, Sang-Wook Kang, Jong Ju Jeong, Kee-Hyun Nam, Woong Youn Chung, Cheong Soo Park, Arthur Cho, and Ha Yan Kim have no conflicts of interest or financial ties to disclose.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Surgery, College of Medicine, Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea

    Sohee Lee

  2. Department of Surgery, Yonsei College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea

    Cho Rok Lee, Haiyoung Son, Sang-Wook Kang, Jong Ju Jeong, Kee-Hyun Nam, Woong Youn Chung & Cheong Soo Park

  3. Department of Surgery, Kangnam Sacred Heart Hospital, Hallym University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea

    Seung Chul Lee

  4. Department of Surgery, Dong-A University College of Medicine, Pusan, Korea

    Seulkee Park

  5. Biostatistics Collaboration Unit, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea

    Ha Yan Kim

  6. Department of Nuclear Medicine, Yonsei College of Medicine, 250 Seongsanno, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, Korea

    Arthur Cho

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  1. Sohee Lee
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Correspondence to Arthur Cho.

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Lee, S., Lee, C.R., Lee, S.C. et al. Surgical completeness of robotic thyroidectomy: a prospective comparison with conventional open thyroidectomy in papillary thyroid carcinoma patients. Surg Endosc 28, 1068–1075 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00464-013-3303-y

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