No Neck Incisions - "Scarless" Surgery?
We are excited to introduce “Robot-Assisted Endoscopic Thyroid and Parathyroid Surgery with No Neck Incisions.” With over 30 combined years of experience performing thyroid and parathyroid surgery, we are among the first surgeons in the United States to offer this procedure.
Thyroid (thyroidectomy, thyroid lobectomy) and parathyroid (parathyroidectomy) surgery has traditionally been performed through a neck incision just above the collar bone. While there have been many refinements to thyroid surgery, patients continue to be unsatisfied with having a cervical (neck) scar.(1,2) By approaching the thyroid or parathyroids through an incision in the axillary fold (under the arm) and using the daVinci Surgical System, we are able to eliminate the cervical (neck) scar and reduce post-surgical numbness of the anterior neck. The recovery time for patients is similar to traditional surgical techniques.
Potential candidates for this new procedure include: patients with thyroid nodules less than 4 cm in diameter, some papillary thyroid carcinomas, and some follicular thyroid carcinomas. Additionally, patients with a parathyroid adenoma that can be localized pre-operatively through imaging studies may be candidates.
Download our daVinci Thyroid Surgery Guide for New Patients (PDF File, 1.7Mb)
The daVinci® Surgical System, which has been widely adopted for use in prostate surgery, hysterectomy and other surgical procedures, offers superior visualization and instrumentation compared to traditional open thyroid surgery, allowing a complete and safe removal to be performed. The da Vinci Surgical System enables surgeons to perform even the most complex and delicate procedures through remote incisions with unmatched precision. With daVinci Surgery, miniaturized wristed instruments and a high-definition 3D camera are introduced through small incisions. Seated comfortably at the daVinci console, your surgeon views a magnified, high-resolution 3D image of the surgical site. At the same time, state-of-the-art robotic and computer technologies scale, filter and seamlessly translate your surgeon's hand movements into precise micro-movements of the daVinci instruments.
Standard laparoscopic surgery uses one single camera and limits a surgeon's vision to a 2-D view similar to watching your television. The daVinci robotic camera consists of two high resolution fiber optic cameras which, like your eyes, produce a true 3-dimensional color picture available to the surgeon seated at the daVinci console. Magnification of 10x is achieved with these cameras whose position is precisely controlled by your surgeon using a central robotic arm.
Although visually similar to standard laparoscopic instruments, the robotic instruments have the additional advantage of being articulated. This means the instruments not only open and close but also fully turn and twist, allowing 7 degrees of motion. Unlike standard open surgical instruments these instruments are much smaller. Many of the jaws of the tools are shorter in length than your fingernail and about as thin as the edge of a half dollar. This allows very small and precise movements and surgical cuts to carefully dissect out the thyroid from its surrounding structures.
The daVinci Surgery System cannot be programmed, nor can it make decisions on its own. It requires that every surgical maneuver be performed with direct input from your surgeon.