Experimental study of the morphological and electromyographic characteristics of the most frequent iatrogenic lesions of the recurrent laryngeal nerves in thyroid surgery.

Introduction: Iatrogenic lesions of the recurrent laryngeal nerves remain one of the most severe and frequent complications in thyroid surgery. According to Eisele (Laryngoscope 1996;106:443) their incidence varies between 1% and 12% depending on the size of surgery.

Aim: The aim of the study was to examine experimentally the type of neural lesion and the efficiency of stimulation electromyography for immediate evaluation of the recurrent laryngeal nerve function in the most common surgical traumas.