Cyst removed by first-of-kind keyhole surgery

Chennai: In a first-of-its-kind in India, a city hospital performed an Endoscopic Thyroglossal Cyst Surgery through a keyhole on a 19-year-old female patient. The patient, who had developed immense swelling on her neck, had it removed without any scar. LIMA, a unit of RIGID Hospitals created a breakthrough in the history of Indian surgery by conducting this unique surgical procedure, which is the first step towards the introduction of such advanced techniques in Laparoscopy.

 "Thyroglossal Cyst is a rare condition which causes the patient to have a round swelling in the neck.  This is connected to the thyroid gland below by a long tract to the tongue above. These cysts need to be removed as there can be infection or cancer if left untreated," said Dr JS Rajkumar, chief laparoscopic surgeon, LIMA, who led the team of doctors in the surgery. "What is usually done to treat such a case is to slash the neck, and remove it, which would leave a long scar in the neck, and sometimes two cuts are required, leaving unsightly scars. A cyst needs to be removed along with the tract that goes down to the thyroid gland, and up to the tongue.  This involves the removal of a lot of tissue," he added.

The surgeons performed the operation without a scar on the neck by approaching the thyroid from the breast. "We created a tunnel through which we reached the thyroid gland. Then, we tracked the entire disease process from the thyroid up to the cyst and continued up to the mouth," stated the doctor. The 19-year-old patient is recovering with no scars in sight.