Management of membranous tracheal rupture due to the endotracheal tube cuff during thyroid surgery.

Tracheobronchial ruptures can be extremely dramatic and life threatening and are encountered in approximately 5 out of 100,000 cases after orotracheal intubation. They can occur as a result of intubation, tracheostomy, and bronchoscopy. In this case report, we presented a 56-year-old female patient with a history of thyroid surgery 27 years prior who presented to our clinic with recurrent multinodular goiter. The patient underwent a complementary complication-free thyroidectomy assisted by intermittent intraoperative nerve monitoring. After hemostasis, final controls involving digital palpation of the possible remnants of the thyroid gland and a search for pathological lymph nodes in the central compartments, a mass structure with a rubbery consistency suspicious for residue thyroid tissue was palpated in both posterolateral aspects of the trachea, but more prominently in the left. The anesthesia team was asked to decrease the cuff pressure, assuming that the palpated mass could be the cuff of the endotracheal tube, and the mass was noted to shrink. The membranous tracheal rupture due to the endotracheal tube cuff was closed with sutures running superiorly, and a superiorly based strap muscle flap was placed over during thyroid surgery. The patient was discharged on day 7. A simple routine digital examination by the attending surgeon dealing with the thyroid surgery would contribute favorably to prognosis, as such a precaution would allow early repair in cases where such injuries occur.

Use of the laser in the pilonidal sinus alone or in combination with phenol.

OBJECTIVE: We investigated the effectiveness of combining laser treatment with phenol in the management of pilonidal sinus. METHODS: We present here a retrospective analysis of patients with pilonidal sinus disease who were treated in the general surgery clinic of the Balikesir University Hospital between October 2019 and February 2022. RESULTS: Recurrence was observed in three patients (13.6%) in the laser treatment group and one patient (4.8%) in the laser-phenol treatment group after the fourth month. Notably, 22 (91.7%) patients in the laser treatment group and 21 (95.5%) patients in the laser-phenol treatment group had complete healing. CONCLUSION: Although not statistically significant, the laser-phenol treatment group exhibited a lower recurrence rate and a higher complete healing rate.

Evaluation of public's perception of scar cosmesis after thyroidectomy: results of a survey of Turkish versus South Korean individuals.

Purpose: Visible scars on the neck caused by thyroid surgery give rise to significant aesthetic, functional, and psychosocial problems. The objective of this study is to comparatively investigate the public perception of neck scar cosmesis in Turkish and South Korean populations. Methods: This survey was prepared to collect participants' demographic and socioeconomic data and determine their perception of scar cosmesis on the neck and consisted of 15 questions. One thousand thirty-nine individuals who did not undergo thyroid surgery completed the survey. The P-values of <0.05 were deemed to indicate statistical significance. Results: There were 1,039 respondents, of whom 525 (50.5%) were Turkish and 514 (49.5%) were South Korean. South Korean respondents stated that they would be significantly more uncomfortable with the thought of having a scar due to thyroid surgery, compared to the Turkish respondents (P < 0.001). The South Korean respondents stated that they would be significantly more concerned about the scar's length, thickness, and darkening color, compared to the Turkish respondents (P < 0.001 for all cases). Conclusion: Patients' expectations, which are affected by various sociodemographic factors and cultural characteristics, are as important as the medical condition when deciding on the type of thyroid surgery. The study findings clearly indicated that the South Korean population would be significantly more uncomfortable with having a scar on the neck, compared to the Turkish population. Therefore, in selected cases, a scarless thyroidectomy approach, such as transoral endoscopic thyroidectomy, vestibular approach may be preferable for societies like South Korea.

Intraoperative freehand SPECT as an alternative imaging technique for use in radioguided parathyroidectomy.

Freehand single photon emission computed tomography (fhSPECT) is a technique that is used to monitor body's radioactivity intraoperatively. Accordingly, in this study, the feasibility of using fhSPECT for intraoperative 3D mapping in radioguided parathyroidectomy has been assessed. Patients, who were diagnosed with primary hyperparathyroidism consecutively, were scanned intraoperatively using fhSPECT to locate parathyroid adenomas before surgical procedure. The fhSPECT images were acquired intraoperatively using a declipse®SPECT device (SurgicEyeTM). The fhSPECT protocol could not be completed due to the technical problems in one patient. Parathyroid adenoma was located in the first patient with no lateral deviation. Nevertheless, a deviation of 8 mm was detected in the depth of the parathyroid adenoma, which is the distance of parathyroid adenoma from the skin. A 20 mm lateral deviation and a 10 mm deviation in depth were detected in the second patient. In the third patient, as was the case in the first patient, parathyroid adenoma was located with no lateral deviation. However, there was a 15 mm deviation in the depth of the parathyroid adenoma. A 5 mm lateral deviation was detected in the fourth patient yet with no deviation in the depth of parathyroid adenoma. Finally, neither lateral nor vertical deviation was detected in fifth patient. Based on the findings of this study, it was concluded that the fhSPECT technology can be helpful to a certain degree in locating the parathyroid adenoma. However, further studies are needed to support the findings of this preliminary study.

Influence of rocuronium on achieving optimal vagal stimulation during intraoperative nerve monitoring in thyroid surgery.

BACKGROUND: In the present study we determine the feasibility of intraoperative neuromonitoring following the administration of a nondepolarizing neuromuscular blocking agent during thyroid operations, as well as the influence of rocuronium on the achievement of optimal vagal stimulation during intraoperative neuromonitoring in thyroid surgery. We further investigate whether accelerometry is a reliable approach to obtaining an ipsilateral vagus signal prior to recurrent laryngeal nerve dissection. METHODS: Included in the study were 61 thyroidectomized patients whose demographic data, indications, type of surgery, vagus, and recurrent nerve values before and after resection were obtained. We created five groups of patients based on the twitch values recorded during ipsilateral vagus stimulation prior to the recurrent laryngeal nerve dissection: (1) <10%, (2) 11-25%, (3) 26-50%, (4) 51-75% and (5) >75%. RESULTS: The average electromyography amplitudes of the vagus nerve prior to the determination of the recurrent laryngeal nerve for each group were 552 µV, 463 µV, 543 µV, 513 µV and 551 µV, respectively. No difference between the groups was observed in this regard (p > 0.05). CONCLUSION: It can be expected that as soon as the effects of neuromuscular blockers on the peripheral muscles begin to abate, it will be possible to obtain the ipsilateral vagus signal prior to recurrent laryngeal nerve dissection at the desired levels. It can be concluded from this study that accelerometry using the pollicis muscle is an unreliable tool for the interpretation of the proper electromyography signals of the vagus nerve prior to the determination of the recurrent laryngeal nerve.

Turkish endocrine surgery publications in international scientific journals.

OBJECTIVE: In recent years, major progress has been made in the field of endocrine surgery in Turkey, similar to that in the rest of the world. Parallel to these developments, there has been a significant increase in the number of publications in the related field. Our study aimed to evaluate Turkey's publications related to endocrine surgery in the international arena. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Members of the general surgery departments from academic centers in Turkey were determined. Using these member names, a PubMed search was performed for English papers related to "endocrine surgery." For searching papers from non-academic centers, the same engine was used. To reach manuscripts possibly missed by the PubMed search, 3 national calls were made through the website of the Turkish Society of Endocrine Surgery. The obtained papers were divided into "thyroid," "parathyroid," "adrenal," and "neuroendocrine tumors" and were listed according to the publication year. In addition, all manuscripts were listed according to the publishing journal and the 2012 impact factor of that journal. This study did not require ethical approval, because it did not involve evaluation of experimental or patient data. RESULTS: A search of Turkish general surgery clinics revealed 497 international publications, between 1976 and 2012. When listed according to the year of publication, most publications were found to be in the year 2009. Papers appeared mostly in "Surgery Today." The mean impact factor of the journals where the papers have been published was 1.9 (0.1-13.8). The rates of thyroid, parathyroid, adrenal tissue and neuroendocrine tumors related publications were 69%, 10%, 15% and 6%, respectively. Since this study is not an experimental study or a study related to patient data, we did not apply for ethical approval. CONCLUSION: The contribution of Turkish general surgeons' to world science is apparent when evaluated in terms of publications related to endocrine surgery until recently. Particularly, since 2002, with the increase in the number of publications in the field of endocrine surgery, there has been an increase in Turkey's importance on the international platform.