Comparison of primary repair and repair with polyglycolic acid coated tube in recurrent laryngeal nerve cuts (an experimental study).

BACKGROUND: Recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) injury is an important complication of thyroid surgery. In our study, we aimed to compare the effects of primary repair and polyglycolic acid (PGA) coated tube repair on nerve function and regeneration in RLN cuts in rats.

METHODS: Twenty seven rats were used for the study. Group-1 with only nerve cuts, group-2 with primary repair, and group-3 with conduit repair. The study was planned over two-stage surgery. In the first step, nerve defect formation and nerve repair were performed in the same session. In the second step, samples were taken from the subjects for histopathological.

RESULTS: Vocal cord mobility was proportionally higher in group-3 than other groups. However, there was no statistically significant difference between the groups (p < 0.239). The mean number of highest axons were detected the group-3.

CONCLUSIONS: We think that PGA coated conduit can provide a more accurate orientation of nerve fibers by creating an isolated environment when compared to the primary repair. And this may be the cause of functional improvement in the nerve.