ROBOTIC THYROIDECTOMY VIA BABA AND TRANSORAL APPROACHES: CLINICAL AND COSMETIC RESULTS FROM 100+ PROCEDURES BY A SINGLE SURGEON IN INDIA drgyanchandpgi@gmail.com

 

ROBOTIC THYROIDECTOMY VIA BABA AND TRANSORAL APPROACHES: CLINICAL AND COSMETIC RESULTS FROM 100+ PROCEDURES BY A SINGLE SURGEON IN INDIA

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India

Oral or Poster

The increasing cosmetic concerns—especially among young and middle-aged women—robotic techniques are emerging as scar-sparing alternatives to conventional open thyroidectomy.

This study retrospectively evaluated clinical and cosmetic outcomes of robotic thyroidectomy using the Bilateral Axillo-Breast Approach (BABA) and Transoral Robotic Thyroidectomy (TORT) in 126 Indian patients treated between October 2022 and July 2025.

The patient cohort (female-to-male ratio ~3:1, mean age 35.3 years) included cases of benign nodules, Graves’ disease, multinodular goitre, and confirmed malignancies. Of the procedures, 69.05% were BABA and 30.95% TORT; 57.94% underwent hemithyroidectomy, 29.37% total thyroidectomy, and 12.7% had additional neck dissection. Papillary thyroid carcinoma was the most common malignancy (62.5%), with an overall malignancy rate of 25.4%. Key metrics showed mean operative and console times of 213.9 and 141.4 minutes, respectively, and an average hospital stay of 4.03 days. Transient hypocalcaemia occurred in 43.5% of total thyroidectomy patients, while 17% experienced transient vocal cord palsy. Minor complications (seroma, neck pain, numbness) were observed in 5.4%, with full resolution and no permanent deficits. TORT cases involved smaller tumours and shorter hospital stays (p < 0.05), whereas BABA allowed quicker wound closure (p < 0.05). Surgical proficiency improved after approximately 40 cases, consistent with the literature.

The robotic thyroidectomy via BABA and TORT is a safe, feasible, and cosmetically superior option in selected patients. Both techniques showed acceptable complication rates and oncologic outcomes. The findings support broader adoption of these approaches in high-volume Indian surgical centres, particularly for patients prioritising cosmetic outcomes