• Bruce J Davidson, Elizabeth Guardiani, and Andrea Wang.
• Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Georgetown University Hospital, 3800 Reservoir Road NW, First floor, Gorman Building, Washington, District of Columbia 20007, USA. davidsob@gunet.georgetown.edu
• Head Neck. 2010 Feb 1; 32 (2): 154-9.

BackgroundOur aim was to assess the safety and efficiency of operating microscope use by surgeons in thyroid surgery to reduce static neck flexion.MethodsA retrospective case review comparing thyroidectomies performed using an operating microscope to those using surgical loupes was done. Operative times and incidence of complications were compared between total thyroidectomy procedures done with either microscope or loupes.ResultsThe use of microscope in 51 thyroidectomies (including 20 for malignancy with central compartment node dissection [CND] and 9 for substernal goiter [SG]) was compared with 65 cases (15 with CND and 11 with SG) done previously using loupes. Surgical times using the microscope were longer (p = .0001), but the increase was significant only in the subset of patients who underwent thyroidectomy with CND. There was no difference in complications between the groups.ConclusionThe use of an operating microscope during thyroidectomy is safe with modest increases in surgical time.Copyright 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

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