Video assisted trans-cervical thymectomy A minimally invasive approach to treat non-thymomatous myasthenia gravis
Marcello Migliore 1, Giovanni Alongi 1, Liborio Rampello 2, Marinella Astuto 3
Affiliations
Article Info
1 Thoracic Surgery, Departments of Surgery, University of Catania, Catania, Italy
2 Neuroscience and Anaesthesia, Departments of Surgery, University of Catania, Catania, Italy
3 Intensive care, Departments of Surgery, University of Catania, Catania, Italy
Abstract
Contemporary surgical options to remove the thymus gland include median sternotomy with extended resection or minimally invasive techniques. Transcervical thymectomy has been criticized as potentially giving a “lesser” thymectomy. We describe the trans cervical approach with telescope enhancement using a standard VATS camera. This report describes the method emphasising the excellent visualization, and discuss the pro and cons over the classic trans-cervical approach or thymectomies performed by VATS or sternotomy.
Keywords
- Myasthenia gravis
- Minimally Invasive Technique
- Thymectomy
- Transcervical approach