Minimally Invasive Techniques Performed Through Other Accesses

Conventional open thyroidectomy usually has a long incision line in the anterior neck that can lead to keloid or hypertrophic scarring. This cosmetic disadvantage of conventional open thyroidectomy led to the evolution of remote-access thyroid surgery, a surgical technique used to resect the thyroid gland remote from the neck, thus resulting in no scar in the neck and transferring scar to an area that is covered by natural position or clothing. Remote thyroid surgery can be performed safely and offers numerous advantages over conventional open thyroid surgery. A good understanding of possible complications and how to prevent them will help maximize patient safety. In this chapter, a brief summary of each surgical technique of remote-access thyroid surgery and its advantages and disadvantages will be described, to allow better understanding of the technique-related complications. Then, the complications and their management will be described in detail.