The Transoral endoscopic thyroidectomy vestibular approach (TOETVA) reportedly has a high safety profile in adults, but data on its application in children are limited. OBJECTIVES: To review a case series of pediatric patients who underwent total thyroidectomy by a scar-free TOETVA.
No actionable change for audiologists — this surgical comparison study concerns thyroid removal techniques in children and has no direct relevance to audiology clinical practice, though awareness of post-thyroidectomy hypoparathyroidism (which can cause calcium imbalance affecting auditory function) may be a distant consideration.
While outside core audiology scope, thyroidectomy in pediatric patients carries a small risk of hypoparathyroidism and recurrent laryngeal nerve injury, both of which have downstream relevance to hearing and voice outcomes occasionally seen in audiology caseloads.
- 01Case-series review compared TOETVA (mouth-entry approach) vs. open total thyroidectomy in pediatric patients.
- 02TOETVA avoids a visible neck scar, which may have cosmetic and psychological benefits for children.
- 03Safety and complication outcomes were evaluated across both surgical techniques.
- 04Published in Harefuah, an Israeli general medical journal — not an audiology-specific publication.
- 05Evidence base is a case series, which is among the weaker levels of clinical evidence.
TOETVA is a feasible and safe alternative to open total thyroidectomy in pediatric patients.
studypartially supportedThe transoral endoscopic vestibular approach produces comparable surgical outcomes to the open approach in children.
studypartially supported- PMID
- 42345244
- Journal
- Harefuah
- Publication type
- case_report
- Evidence level
- 4
- Population
- Pediatric patients undergoing total thyroidectomy
- Intervention
- Transoral endoscopic vestibular approach (TOETVA) total thyroidectomy
- Comparator
- Open total thyroidectomy
Primary outcomes
Surgical safety and complication rates; Operative outcomes comparison between TOETVA and open approach