Trans-oral glasses-free three-dimensional endoscopic thyroidectomy—preliminary single center experiences

Trans-oral endoscopic thyroidectomy is a natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgical procedure (NOTES) which enables surgeons to remove the thyroid gland without leaving any visible skin scars (1). The widely used three-dimensional (3D) endoscopic system provides surgeons excellent depth perception to identify anatomic structure correctly and precisely in operation. However, wearing a pair of polarized glasses reduces light quality of the picture displayed on the screen. Moreover, the formation of fog as a result of a surgeon’s breath interrupts the continuity of the procedure. The glasses-free 3D system can overcome the disadvantages noted above. Herein, we report our first case-serial of trans-oral endoscopic thyroidectomy by means of our newly developed glasses-free 3D endoscopic system. A search of the Literature revealed no similar reports, implying our cases may be the first reported on trans-oral glasses-free 3D endoscopic thyroidectomy in the world