Double Recurrent Laryngeal Nerve with Thyroid Carcinoma

Abstract

The most important and serious complication of thyroid surgery is recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) injury, and it has been noted that this risk increases considerably in the presence of anatomical variations. Double recurrent laryngeal nerve (DRLN) is very rare among RLN anatomical variations. There are only a few case reports on DRLN in the literature It is crucial to possess surgical expertise and ensure complete visualization of the nerve to minimize the likelihood of RLN injury. Intraoperative nerve monitoring (IONM) is particularly useful in identifying anatomical variations. In a 54-year-old woman undergoing diagnostic left lobectomy+isthmectomy, a left DRLN was identified during intraoperative exploration and meticulous nerve exploration with the assistance of IONM monitoring verified that the impulse conduction in both branches was identical. The surgical procedure was successfully performed without causing any harm to the nerve. Based on the case reports in the literature and our experience with this patient, we believe that surgical expertise and the utilization of IONM can decrease RLN nerve damage and reveal its anatomical variations during thyroid surgery.