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Case Reports
. 2012 Jan;14(1):115-6.
doi: 10.1093/icvts/ivr008. Epub 2011 Nov 18.

Tracheal laceration after laser ablation of nodular goitre

Gaetano Di Rienzo  1 , Corrado Surrente, Camillo Lopez, Rosatea Quercia
Affiliations
Case Reports

Tracheal laceration after laser ablation of nodular goitre

Gaetano Di Rienzo et al. Interact Cardiovasc Thorac Surg. 2012 Jan.

Abstract

A tracheal perforation was discovered after Nd-YAG laser thermal ablation (LTA) of a thyroid nodule. The LTA is a relatively new method of treatment of thyroid nodules, which consists of delivering laser energy into the thyroid by means of two optical fibres. The patient presented with a multinodular goitre and initially refused surgery, then underwent an LTA of a thyroid nodule. Fifty days after the procedure she started to have symptoms related to a tracheal stenosis and, after tracheoscopy, a tracheal perforation was diagnosed and she underwent a total thyroidectomy plus tracheal repair. The results of the histological examination revealed a goitre with a focal area of papillary carcinoma. This particular complication is likely the first of its kind to be described after the LTA of a thyroid nodule.

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Figures

Figure 1:
Figure 1:
Clear necrosis of the tracheal mucosa (area of diameter 1 cm2) on the right lateral wall of the second–third tracheal ring with the intra-luminal bulging of the thyroid tissue.
Figure 2:
Figure 2:
Normal tracheoscopic control 1 year after the operation.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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