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Introduction and use of video‐assisted endoscopic thyroidectomy for patients in B elarus affected by the C hernobyl nuclear disaster
Author(s) -
Igarashi Takehito,
Shimizu Kazuo,
Yakubouski Siarhei,
Akasu Haruki,
Okamura Ritsuko,
Sugitani Iwao,
Jikuzono Tomoo,
Danilova Larisa
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
asian journal of endoscopic surgery
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.372
H-Index - 18
eISSN - 1758-5910
pISSN - 1758-5902
DOI - 10.1111/ases.12058
Subject(s) - medicine , blood loss , thyroidectomy , surgery , thyroid carcinoma , thyroid , general surgery
We developed video‐assisted neck surgery ( VANS ) – a feasible, simple, and safe endoscopic thyroid procedure with cosmetic benefits – in 1998. To date, we have performed this procedure 633 times. We have also introduced the VANS method in B elarus, a country that was left contaminated by the C hernobyl nuclear disaster. Methods From a mass screening, nine B elarusian patients, including two with papillary carcinoma of the thyroid, were selected to undergo an operation using the VANS method, performed by a single surgeon (author S himizu). We compared indicating factors for minimally invasive surgery, specifically the operating time and blood loss, between the B elarusian cases and the 33 most recent cases performed at our institute in Tokyo. Results The procedures in Belarus were performed under very different working conditions than in Japan. However, operating time and blood loss improved for the B elarusian cases as the surgeon gained experience in this environment; all the cosmetic outcomes were excellent. Subsequently, over a 2‐year period, surgeons in B elarus performed the VANS method, with modification, for 29 cases of thyroid tumor. Conclusion The VANS method is easily learned by inexperienced surgeons without major technical problems.