Published online Jun 28, 2023. doi: 10.4329/wjr.v15.i6.182
Peer-review started: March 1, 2023
First decision: April 13, 2023
Revised: April 27, 2023
Accepted: May 30, 2023
Article in press: May 30, 2023
Published online: June 28, 2023
Processing time: 117 Days and 3 Hours
An individual's normal growth and metabolism depend on the thyroid gland, an endocrine organ. Simple goiter, thyroid cancer, and malignant thyroid nodules are just a few of the conditions that can affect the thyroid gland. Sometimes it is necessary to perform a thyroidectomy or hemithyroidectomy in order to remove a malignant thyroid tumor. Additionally, the neck is examined for surgical treatments such as lobectomy, carotid endarterectomy, emergency cricothyroidotomy, radical neck dissection, diagnostic and therapeutic catheterization, and selective thyroid embolization. Breathing difficulties may result from tracheal compression brought on by bleeding during the thyroid gland surgery.
To avoid complications during thyroid surgeries, surgeons must be aware of the path and variations of the thyroid arteries. The Garhwal region of the Sub-Himalayan belt, which is thought to be the endemic zone of goitre, has little scientific literature on the radiological anatomy of thyroid arteries. A three-dimensional orientation of the vascular and surgical anatomy of the entire cervical region is provided by computed tomography angiography.
Radiography is a non-invasive multiplanar imaging technique for vascular mapping. The objective of the current research was to examine the origin and variation of thyroid arteries, with the aid of Computed Tomography angiography, Surgeons must be familiar with the course and variations of the thyroid arteries to prevent difficulties during thyroid operations.
Patients with known vascular anomalies (carotid hypoplasia, plaque in the carotid bifurcation, aneurysms) or past common carotid occlusions were excluded. Following the Institutional Ethics Committee's consent, the Department of Radiodiagnosis obtained computed tomography (CT) angiographic data from 64-slice and 128-slice CT scanners. RadiAnt DICOM Viewer (RadiAnt), a programme installed on the MSI laptop PC, was used to reconstruct the three-dimensional views of the photos. The Stuart-Maxwell test and the chi square test were employed in the statistical study.
Out of 210 individuals, 77.1% of the time the superior thyroid artery was observed to be arising from the external carotid artery. In 14.3% of cases, the artery was shown to originate at the point where the common carotid artery splits, whereas in 8.6% of cases, it was discovered to be a direct branch of the common carotid artery. Similar to this, in 95.7%, 3.3%, and 1% of cases, respectively, the inferior thyroid artery was seen to be arising from the thyrocervical trunk, subclavian artery, and vertebral artery. Another person was found to have a thyroid ima artery that emerged from the brachiocephalic trunk.
In our study, superior thyroid artery (STA) originated from external carotid artery in 77% of instances, and the common carotid artery (CCA) and common carotid bifurcation were the sources of STA in more than 22% of cases. Variation in the degree of CCA bifurcation was also observed, which significantly alters the path of STA. The current study shows that there is a 4% variance in inferior thyroid artery origin, whereas its course varies depending on the level of thyrocervical trunk origin. We discovered that the thyroid ima artery is only occasionally present in a small number of cases—it was only present in one case—and that if it goes unnoticed, it can cause serious hemorrhagic disease.
The Garhwal region of the Sub-Himalayan belt, which is thought to be the endemic zone of goitre, has little scientific literature on the radiological anatomy of thyroid arteries. A three-dimensional orientation of the vascular and surgical anatomy of the entire cervical region is provided by computed tomography angiography. The objective of the current research was to examine the origin and variation of thyroid arteries, with the aid of Computed Tomography angiography, Surgeons must be familiar with the course and variations of the thyroid arteries to prevent difficulties during thyroid operations. Additional research in this area using even better methods can further add to the existing knowledge on thyroid arteries.