Table II.
Primary and secondary outcomes
| Parameter | MIVAP (n = 151) | OMIP (n = 304) | Value of p |
|---|---|---|---|
| Postoperative pain (VAS), mean ± SD (range) [pts] | |||
| At 4 h | 22.3 ±4.6 (15–30) | 28.8 ±5.8 (19–38) | < 0.001 |
| At 8 h | 25.3 ±5.0 (17–34) | 27.3 ±5.7 (18–37) | < 0.001 |
| At 12 h | 16.6 ±4.1 (10–25) | 22.2 ±4.9 (14–30) | < 0.001 |
| At 24 h | 10.9 ±3.7 (5–18) | 16.2 ±3.8 (10–22) | < 0.001 |
| Analgesia request, n (%) | 99 (65.6) | 278 (91.4) | < 0.001 |
| Analgesics consumption, mean ± SD (range) [mg] | 48.0 ±41.6 (0–150) | 89.1 ±48.9 (0–200) | < 0.001 |
| Duration of surgery, mean ± SD (range) [min] | 42.5 ±10.1 (25–60) | 37.4 ±10.9 (20–55) | < 0.001 |
| RLN identification, n (%) | 140 (92.7) | 221 (72.7) | < 0.001 |
| Conversion, n (%): | 4 (2.7) | 10 (3.3) | 0.709 |
| UNE | 1 (0.7) | 4 (1.3) | |
| BNE | 3 (2.0) | 6 (2.0) | |
| Length of hospital stay, mean ± SD (range) [days]: | 1.14 ±0.48 (1–3) | 1.20 ±0.51 (1–3) | 0.216 |
| 1 day, n (%) | 138 (91.4) | 258 (84.9) | |
| 2 days, n (%) | 5 (3.3) | 31 (10.2) | |
| 3 days, n (%) | 8 (5.3) | 15 (4.9) | |
| Cure of hyperparathyroidism, n (%) | 150 (99.3) | 303 (99.7) | 0.613 |
| Length of scar, mean ± SD (range) [mm] | 17.8 ±1.9 (15–21) | 31.4 ±4.2 (25–38) | < 0.001 |
| Patients’ satisfaction with cosmetic outcome (VRS), mean ± SD (range) [pts]: | |||
| At 1 month | 3.77 ±0.62 (2–5) | 3.60 ±0.75 (1–5) | 0.013 |
| At 6 months | 4.10 ±0.71 (2–5) | 3.95 ±0.70 (2–5) | 0.024 |
| Morbidity, n (%): | 0.627 | ||
| Transient hypocalcaemia | 7 (4.6) | 16 (5.3) | |
| Permanent hypoparathyroidism | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | |
| Transient RLN injury | 2 (1.3) | 5 (1.6) | |
| Permanent RLN injury | 1 (0.7) | 3 (1.0) | |
| Costs, mean (range) [EUR] | 1048.7 (775.0–1460.0) | 841.0 (600.0–1110.0) | < 0.001 |
VRS – verbal rating scale (0 – poor, 1 – weak, 2 – acceptable, 3 – good, 4 – very good, 5 – excellent), SD – standard deviation, RLN – recurrent laryngeal nerve, UNE – unilateral neck exploration, BNE – bilateral neck exploration