Transoral thyroid and parathyroid surgery. Implementation and evaluation of the transoral endoscopic technique via the vestibular approach (TOETVA)

摘要

More than 10 years ago various research groups in Germany first reported the possibility of transoral surgery of the thyroid and parathyroid glands. These were developed and evaluated within the framework of natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery (NOTES). While development of these innovative and new techniques that enabled surgery without visible scars did not become well accepted in Europe and America, it led to an optimized transoral endoscopic thyroidectomy vestibular approach (TOETVA), which was implemented particularly in Asia. We report the preparation, step-by-step implementation, and first promising results for TOETVA of an international surgical cooperation.