Informed Consent for Intraoperative Neural Monitoring in Thyroid and Parathyroid Surgery - Consensus Statement of the International Neural Monitoring Study Group

Intraoperative neuromonitoring during thyroidectomy does not decrease vocal cord palsy risk, but the cumulative experience of the surgeon may

PURPOSE

To evaluate the influence of intraoperative neuromonitoring (IONM) on vocal cord palsy (VCP) rates and assess the temporal trends in VCP rates.

METHODS

The subjects of this retrospective study were patients who underwent thyroidectomy for thyroid cancer between March, 2014 and June, 2022, at a university hospital in Korea. We compared VCP rates between the non-IONM and IONM groups and analyzed the risk factors for VCP and VCP rates over time.

RESULTS

A total of 712 patients were included in the analysis. The rates of transient and permanent VCP did not differ significantly between the non-IONM and IONM groups. Transient VCP occurred in 4.6% and 4.3% patients (p = 0.878) and VCP was permanent in 0.7% and 0.4% patients (p = 0.607) in the non-IONM and IONM groups, respectively. Among the nerves at risk, transient damage occurred in 2.8% and 3.0% patients (p = 0.901), and permanent damage occurred in 0.4% and 0.3% (p = 0.688), respectively. Multivariate analysis revealed no significant risk factors for VCP. There was a significant decreasing trend in VCP rates over time as the cumulative number of cases increased (p = 0.017).

CONCLUSIONS

IONM did not reduce the risk of VCP significantly. However, the declining trend of VCP rates suggests that the surgeon's experience may mitigate VCP risk.

A Nationwide Survey to Assess the Practices and Patterns of Use of Intraoperative Nerve Monitoring During Thyroid Surgery Among Surgeons in India

There is still equipoise for the routine use of intraoperative nerve monitoring (IONM) for thyroid surgeries; however, some surgeons tend to use it for various reasons. In our study, we did a national survey to assess the patterns and practice of the use of IONM among surgeons during thyroid surgery in India. A questionnaire survey was sent to surgeons (head and neck surgical oncologists, general surgical oncologists, endocrine surgeons and otolaryngologists) in different zones in India via email, and their responses were analysed. One hundred and one responses were received. The majority of the respondents were head and neck surgical oncologists (n = 56, 55.4%). Forty-three (42.6%) respondents used IONM during thyroid surgeries in this survey. Surgeons with ≤ 15 years of experience performing thyroid surgeries (p = 0.02) and surgeons performing > 50 thyroid surgeries also tended to use IONM. Mostly IONM was used for surgeries on thyroid malignancies (p = 0.016). The respondents used IONM for more than one reason such as medicolegal purposes and surgeon comfort among others. IONM was most often used during redo surgeries (n = 46, 45.5%) and in patients with already one fixed cord (n = 39, 38.6%). The majority felt IONM was not cost-effective (n = 53, 52.5%). The use of IONM during thyroid surgery in our survey was nearly 43%. It was used mostly for surgery for thyroid malignancies, and it was found to be used for more than one reason and indications such as redo surgeries (most commonly).

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13193-023-01818-5.

Litigation in thyroid surgery: a pan-specialty review of National Health Service (UK) data

OBJECTIVE

Thyroid surgery carries risks that significantly impact patients. This paper describes the landscape of thyroid surgery related litigation claims in the National Health Service from April 2015 to April 2020, to establish learning points in order to improve patient care and minimise litigation risk.

METHODS

Data were requested from National Health Service Resolution and Hospital Episode Statistics. Claims were classified into operative and non-operative causes. Subspecialty information, incident details and claim costings were analysed.

RESULTS

Sixty claims were identified. Thirty-eight claims (63.3 per cent) were closed, with an average total claim cost of £68 816 and average damages paid of £36 349. Claims related to diagnostic issues were most common (n = 19); of claims associated with operative causes (n = 30), those relating to nerve injury were most common (n = 8), with issues of nerve monitoring and consent being cited.

CONCLUSION

Utilisation of well-established protocols will likely reduce litigation in thyroid surgery, as we move towards a landscape in which the patient journey is thoroughly scrutinised for targeted improvements.

Management of surgical diseases of thyroid gland indications of the United Italian Society of Endocrine Surgery (SIUEC)

A task force of the United Italian society of Endocrine Surgery (SIUEC) was commissioned to review the position statement on diagnostic, therapeutic and health‑care management protocol in thyroid surgery published in 2016, at the light of new technologies, recent oncological concepts, and tailored approaches. The objective of this publication was to support surgeons with modern rational protocols of treatment that can be shared by health-care professionals, taking into account important clinical, healthcare and therapeutic aspects, as well as potential sequelae and complications. The task force consists of 13 members of the SIUEC highly trained and experienced in thyroid surgery. The main topics concern clinical evaluation and preoperative workup, patient preparation for surgery, surgical treatment, non-surgical options, postoperative management, prevention and management of major complications, outpatient care and follow-up.

The safety, benefits and future development of overnight and outpatient thyroidectomy

With the development of medical care, the safety of thyroidectomy is improving year by year. Due to economic benefits and other advantages of the overnight and outpatient thyroidectomy, more and more patients and medical institutions have favored overnight and outpatient thyroidectomy, and its proportion in thyroidectomy has increased year by year. However, overnight and outpatient thyroidectomy still faces many challenges and remains to be improved. In this review, we focused on the recent progress and the relevant clinical features of overnight and outpatient thyroidectomy, including its safety, economic benefits, etc., which may bring valuable clues and information for further improvements of patient benefits and promotions of overnight or outpatient thyroidectomy in the future.

Rocuronium with sugammadex as a rescue reversal agent to solve conflicting recommendations for thyroid or parathyroid surgery. A prospective study

INTRODUCTION

For thyroid or parathyroid surgery, there is a challenge to select a muscle relaxant agent allowing a good quality for tracheal intubation without any residual effect at the time of intraoperative neural monitoring.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

In this monocentric study, non-morbidly obese adult patients without risk factors for difficult tracheal intubation who underwent thyroid or parathyroid surgery with intraoperative neural monitoring were prospectively included. After rocuronium injection (0.5 mg.kg^-1) during propofol-sufentanil induction, intubation conditions were evaluated using the Copenhagen score. The surgeon positioned the electrodes NIM® and tested the vagal nerve before recurrent nerve dissection. The signal was considered positive when the wave amplitude exceeded 100 μV. If not, sugammadex (2 mg.kg^-1) was administered. The dissection began when the signal was positive.

RESULTS

From January 2022 to June 2022, 48 out of 50 patients, 39 (81%) female, met inclusion criteria and were prospectively recruited in the study (two patients had predictable difficult intubation criteria). Intubation conditions were clinically acceptable for 46/48 (96%) of patients. The time delay from rocuronium injection to vagal stimulation was 43 min (mean) +/- 11 (SD). The vagal stimulation was positive in 45 patients (94%). In the 3 remaining patients, sugammadex successfully reversed residual curarization and allowed positive vagal stimulation.

DISCUSSION

This prospective study shows that the use of 0.5 mg.kg^-1 rocuronium with sugammadex as a rescue reversal agent allows good quality and safety for intubation conditions and intraoperative neural monitoring in patients scheduled for thyroid or parathyroid surgery.

Proposals for Standardization of Intraoperative Facial Nerve Monitoring during Parotid Surgery

Intraoperative facial nerve monitoring (FNM) has been widely accepted as an adjunct during parotid surgery to facilitate identification of the facial nerve (FN) main trunk, dissection of FN branches, confirmation of FN function integrity, detection of FN injury and prognostication of facial expression after tumor resection. Although the use of FNM in parotidectomy is increasing, little uniformity exists in its application from the literature. Thus, not only are the results of many studies difficult to compare but the value of FNM technology is also limited. The article reviews the current literature and proposes our standardized FNM procedures during parotid surgery, such as standards in FNM setup, standards in general anesthesia, standards in FNM procedures and application of stimulus currents, interpretation of electrophysiologic signals and prediction of the facial expression outcome and pre-/post-operative assessment of facial expressions. We hope that the FNM standardized procedures will provide greater uniformity, improve the quality of applications and contribute to future research.

Optimal Monitoring Technology for Pediatric Thyroidectomy

This retrospective study aimed to describe, firstly, characteristics and outcomes of the intraoperative neural monitoring technology in the pediatric population, and secondarily the recurrent laryngeal nerve complication rate. Thirty-seven patients (age <18 years) operated on from 2015 to 2021 by conventional open thyroid surgery were included. Twenty-four (64.9%) total thyroidectomies and 13 (35.1%) lobectomies were performed. Seven central and six lateral lymph node dissections completed 13 bilateral procedures. Histology showed malignancy in 45.9% of the cases. The differences between the electromyographic profiles of endotracheal tubes or electrodes for continuous monitoring were not statistically significant. In our series of young patients, both adhesive (even in 4- or 5-year-olds) and embedded endotracheal tubes were used, while in patients 3 years old or younger, the use of a more invasive detection method with transcartilage placement recording electrodes was required. Overall, out of 61 total at-risk nerves, 5 (8.2%) recurrent laryngeal nerves were injured with consequent intraoperative loss of the signal; however, all these lesions were transient, restoring their normal functionality within 4 months from surgical procedure. To our knowledge, this is the first study of intraoperative neural monitoring management in a cohort of Italian pediatric patients.

Necessity of Routinely Testing the Proximal and Distal Ends of Exposed Recurrent Laryngeal Nerve During Monitored Thyroidectomy

OBJECTIVES

Intraoperative neuromonitoring (IONM) is a useful tool to evaluate the function of recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) in thyroid surgery. This study aimed to determine the necessity and value of routinely testing the proximal and distal ends of RLN.

METHODS

In total, 796 patients undergoing monitored thyroidectomies with standardized procedures were enrolled. All 1346 RLNs with visual integrity of anatomical continuity were routinely stimulated at the most proximal (R2p signal) and distal (R2d signal) ends after complete RLN dissection. The EMG amplitudes between R2p and R2d signals were compared. If the amplitude of R2p/R2d ratio reduction (RPDR) was over 10% or loss of signal (LOS) occurred, the exposed RLN was mapped to identify the injured point. Pre- and post-operative vocal cord (VC) mobility was routinely examined with video-laryngofiberscope.

RESULTS

Nerve injuries were detected in 108 (8%) RLNs, including 94 nerves with incomplete LOS (RPDR between 13%-93%) and 14 nerves with complete LOS. The nerve injuries were caused by traction in 80 nerves, dissecting trauma in 23 nerves and lateral heat spread of energy-based devices in 5 nerves. Symmetric VC mobility was found in 72 nerves with RPDR ≤50%. The occurrence of abnormal VC mobility (weak or fixed) was 14%, 67%, 100%, and 100% among the different RPDR stratifications of 51%-60%, 61%-70%, 71%-80%, and 81-93%, respectively. Of the 14 nerves with complete LOS, all showed fixed VC mobility. Permanent VC palsy occurred in 2 nerves with thermal injury.

CONCLUSION

Routinely testing the proximal and distal ends of exposed RLN helps detect unrecognized partial nerve injury, elucidate the injury mechanism and determine injury severity. The procedure provides accurate information for evaluating RLN function after nerve dissection and should be included in the standard IONM procedure.