Transoral vestibular robotic thyroidectomy in pediatric thyroid disease: 5 case reports

The safety and feasibility of transoral endoscopic thyroidectomy vestibular approach in pediatric patients has been clinically proven, and its cosmetic results have been recognized by children and their families. However, there are no reports on using transoral robotic in pediatric thyroid surgery. In this study, we report the experience of 5 cases of transoral vestibular robotic thyroidectomy in treating of thyroid disease in children.

Retrospective analysis of clinical data of five children who underwent robotic thyroid surgery via the TOVRT in our hospital from February 2021 to April 2023, including operation time, tumor diameter, postoperative hospitalization time, and surgical complications. All five patients were operated on by the same team, and the postoperative pathological results were all follicular adenoma of thyroid. The children had a strong desire for cosmetic surgery, and their families voluntarily chose the robotic surgical system for their surgery.

All five patients underwent unilateral thyroid lobectomy without conversion to open surgery. All patients were female, with a mean BMI of (19.63 ± 1.79) kg/m² and the mean age was (14.40 ± 2.33) years. The average operation time was (52.00 ± 5.10) mins, the average tumor diameter was (41.60 ± 8.41) mm, and the average postoperative hospital stay was (3.60 ± 0.49) days. There were no complications such as hypoparathyroidism, recurrent laryngeal nerve injury, genioglossal nerve injury, or skin necrosis.

The transoral vestibular robotic thyroidectomy is safe and feasible, providing a new treatment option for pediatric thyroid diseases that require surgical treatment.