Table 4.
Technical differences in thyroid/parathyroid surgery by surgeon volume N; (% of respondents).
| Always/Mostly | Half-time | Some-times | Rarely | Unsure | P(t-test) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Use RLN neuromonitor | ||||||
| Low Volume | 34(30) | 3(3) | 10(9) | 62(55) | 3(3) | .823 |
| High Volume | 31(25) | 11(9) | 24(19) | 58(47) | 0(0) | |
| Use electrocautery near TE groove | ||||||
| Low Volume | 9(8) | 2(2) | 11(10) | 90(80) | - | .146 |
| High Volume | 12(10) | 4(3) | 24(19) | 84(68) | ||
| Use bipolar near TE groove | ||||||
| Low Volume | 28(25) | 8(7) | 21(19) | 54(48) | 1(1) | .500 |
| High Volume | 34(27) | 12(10) | 23(19) | 55(44) | 0(0) | |
| Use harmonic scalpel on vessels | ||||||
| Low Volume | 28(25) | 11(10) | 23(21) | 49(44) | 1(1) | .013 |
| High Volume | 46(37) | 19(15) | 18(15) | 40(32) | 1(1) | |
| Dissect RLN | ||||||
| Low Volume | 62(55) | 15(13) | 17(15) | 18(16) | 0(0) | .001 |
| High Volume | 91(73) | 15(12) | 13(11) | 4(3) | 1(1) | |
| Look for EBSLN | ||||||
| Low Volume | 26(23) | 13(12) | 33(30) | 40(36) | 0(0) | .026 |
| High Volume | 40(32) | 17(14) | 37(30) | 28(23) | 2(2) | |
| Divide Strap muscles | ||||||
| Low Volume | 4(4) | 4(4) | 27(24) | 76(68) | 1(1) | .400 |
| High Volume | 9(7) | 3(2) | 30(24) | 81(65) | 1(1) |
P-values are from t-test where categories were coded as 4-Always, 3-Half-time, 2-Sometime and 1-Rarely and treated as ordinal data. “Unsure” data were not included in the analysis.