What is ThyroplasticsTM?

ThyroplasticsTM is the newest technique that is available to patients who need thyroid or parathyroid surgery. While the term first originated in 2026, the earliest ideas that considered the impact of thyroid and parathyroid surgery have been part of surgical planning for years. Similar to the term oncoplastics, The Russell Center is the first center in the world to offer these thyroplastic techniques to every patient who is interested in thyroid or parathyroid surgery.

Thyroplastics is the idea that surgery or the treatment of a thyroid or parathyroid problem could leave your neck looking better than it did before surgery. This could include improving the definition of the chin, removing submental fat, or even removing excess skin that leads to wrinkles. Defined briefly, thyroplastics means using treatment of a medical thyroid or parathyroid problem to simultaneously improve the aesthetic appearance of a patient.

Key principles of the thyroplasticsTM technique require the complete ability to remove all tumor or disease, ensuring that tumor control rates remain at least as good as traditional techniques. Another key point is that the technique is only offered to patients who are considering thyroid or parathyroid surgery for a valid medical reason. Common reasons to offer these techniques include thyroid cancer, Graves' disease, Hashimoto's thyroiditis, benign nodules, or indeterminate thyroid nodules.

How is the thyroplasticsTM technique done? There are a few different techniques that can be used to improve the appearance of the neck at the same time as removing a thyroid or parathyroid gland.

The most common example of utilizing thyroplasticsTM techniques is the transoral lipectomy. With this approach, patients will have a traditional "scarless" transoral surgery (the only surgical technique that avoids any scar on the neck). At the conclusion of this case, the surgeon will remove fat from the submental area (also known as a submental lipectomy). This improves the appearance of the neck and better defines the mandible, while avoiding any scars in the neck.

The next common example of thyroplasticsTM includes a submental thyroidectomy, which does leave a small incision beneath the mandible. The advantages of this approach sometimes justify the incision, however, because the incision allows for the removal of excess tissue that has accumulated over the years. This procedure, known as a submentoplasty, can be readily combined with a traditional submental thyroidectomy.

Finally, for elderly patients or those with more significant skin laxity, a dedicated submentoplasty incision (such as the "Grecian Urn" incision) can be utilized. While this allows for the removal of signifcant soft tissue and can create an excellent profile, the incisions themselves are the most notable of the various thyroplasticsTM techniques currently in use.

Each of these techniques, and their various modifications, can be utilized from time to time in patients who are interested in improving the appearance of their neck and having simultaneous plastic surgery. The risks of the techniques appear to be similar to the risk of remote access surgery, which is generally proven to be just as safe as traditional thyroid or parathyroid surgery.

If you are interested in having treatment of your thyroid or parathyroid gland and also treating your neck to improve the appearance, please let us know if we can help!