Cervical approach to cervico-mediastinal goiters: Experience of a Moroccan ENT tertiary center - Case series

The purpose of the study was to analyze and discuss the demographic, clinical, radiological, therapeutic and postoperative findings of the Cervico-mediastinal goiters (CMG) treated through a cervical approach admitted in the ENT department of Ibn Rochd university hospital, Casablanca, Morocco between January 2014 and January 2020.

Over a period of 6 years, 116 patients underwent surgical treatment for CMG. It was defined as a goiter extending below the plane of superior thoracic aperture on CT scan. All our patients had clinical, biological and radiological assessment before surgery. A nasofibroscopy was carried out pre and postoperatively. All the CMG have been extracted trough a cervical approach by an experimented ENT surgeon.

84,48% of the CMG was diving into the anterior mediastinum and 15.52% into the posterior. The CMGs extended above, at, and below the level of the aortic arch respectively in 76.72%, 18.10% and 5.17% of the patients. All of 116 goiters were successfully removed through a cervical approach. No patient required a sternotomy. Postoperatively, vocal cord paralysis was transient in 3 patients (2.58%) and permanent in 2 patients (1.72%). Hypocalcemia was transient in 10 patients (8.62%) and permanent in 2 patients (1.72%). Final histology found 106 benign multinodular goiters (91.37%), 7 papillary carcinomas (6.03%) and 3 vesicular carcinomas (2.58%). No death was noted.

With expertise in thyroid surgery, cervical approach for CMGs is safe and sufficient in the majority of the cases with low morbidity rate and no mortality.