[Zuckerkandl's tubercle: incidence and relationship with the inferior laryngeal nerve].

Unlabelled: The iatrogenal lesion of the inferior laryngeal nerve (ILN) during thyroid surgery is an incident, which can have greatest functional after-effects. Its research is recommended during cervicotomy for thyroidectomy and it can be easily found by the presence of Zuckerkandl tubercle, which is a postero-lateral excrescence of the thyroid gland.

Objectives: The main objective of our study was the researching of the presence of this Zuckerkandl tubercle and appreciating the reports with the ILN.

Patients And Methods: From 1st October 2010 to 30th September 2012, we realized a continuous prospective study on a mono-operator series of 48 patients operated on for thyroidectomy. The Zuckerkandl tubercle has been researched from all the patients and classified according to the classification of Pelizzo et al.

Results: From 21 patients (43.75%), the Zuckerkandl tubercle has been well identified and it was grade 3 and grade 2. In those cases, the ILN was very closed to the tubercle. For the 27 other patients (56.25%), the tubercle was practically undetectable or reduced to a small glandular mound (grades 0 and 1). The connections with the nerve in this case were less evident.

Conclusion: The zuckerkandl tubercle is comparatively frequent and is refound more than one time over 3 in our study. Its presence makes easier the identification of the ILN, which entertains a dangerous connection with the thyroid gland.