Evaluation of public’s perception of scar cosmesis after thyroidectomy: Results of a survey of Turkish versus South Korean individuals

Purpose: Visible scars on the neck caused by thyroid surgery give rise to significant aesthetic, functional, and psychosocial problems. The objective of this study is to comparatively investigate the public perception of neck scar cosmesis in Turkish and South Korean populations. Methods: This survey was prepared to collect participants’ demographic and socioeconomic data and determine their perception of scar cosmesis on the neck and consisted of 15 questions. One thousand thirty-nine individuals who did not undergo thyroid surgery completed the survey. The P-values of <0.05 were deemed to indicate statistical significance. Results: There were 1,039 respondents, of whom 525 (50.5%) were Turkish and 514 (49.5%) were South Korean. South Korean respondents stated that they would be significantly more uncomfortable with the thought of having a scar due to thyroid surgery, compared to the Turkish respondents (P < 0.001). The South Korean respondents stated that they would be significantly more concerned about the scar’s length, thickness, and darkening color, compared to the Turkish respondents (P < 0.001 for all cases). Conclusion: Patients’ expectations, which are affected by various sociodemographic factors and cultural characteristics, are as important as the medical condition when deciding on the type of thyroid surgery. The study findings clearly indicated that the South Korean population would be significantly more uncomfortable with having a scar on the neck, compared to the Turkish population. Therefore, in selected cases, a scarless thyroidectomy approach, such as transoral endoscopic thyroidectomy, vestibular approach may be preferable for societies like South Korea

Böbrek nakli sonrası double j stent koyulan ve koyulmayan hastaların karşılaştırılması

Kronik böbrek hastalığı (KBH), nefron sayısı ve nefron fonksiyonlarında azalma ile giden ve sıklıkla son dönem böbrek yetmezliğine (SDBY) sebep olan, pek çok etyolojik sebebi olan patofizyolojik bir süreçtir. Son dönem böbrek yetmezliği safhasına gelen hastalar periton diyalizi, hemodiyaliz ve böbrek naklini içeren renal replasman tedavilerinden biriyle hayatını idame ettirebilmektedir. Diyaliz hastaları ile böbrek nakli (BN) yapılmış hastaların karşılaştırıldığı bir çalışmada BN'nin 4 yıl sonunda tüm sebeplere bağlı ölüm oranını %68 azalttığı gösterilmiştir (3). Bu nedenle böbrek nakli tartışmasız bir şekilde en iyi renal replasman tedavisi olarak kabul edilmektedir. Renal transplantasyon, içinde ürolojik ve vasküler komponentleri içeren major bir cerrahi işlemdir. Renal transplantasyon sonrasında kanama, hematom, lenfosel, insizyonel herni ve yara enfeksiyonu gibi cerrahiye bağlı genel komplikasyonların yanında, üriner kaçak, üreteral obstrüksiyon ve taş oluşumu gibi ürolojik komplikasyonlar ve arteriyel veya venöz tromboz ya da darlık gibi vasküler komplikasyonlar görülebilmektedir. Bu çalışma ile, EÜTFH Genel Cerrahi Kliniği' nde 2008-2011 yılları arasında böbrek nakli yapılan hastaların demografik özelliklerinin, cerrahi komplikasyonların, idrar yolu enfeksiyonunun, hematürinin, ve kreatinin seviyelerinin D-J stentler ile ilişkisini retrospektif olarak araştırmayı amaçladık. Bizim sonuçlarımız böbrek nakli hastalarında cerrahi komplikasyon açısından düşük riskli hasta grubunda D-J stent kullanılmadan başarılı sonuçlar alınabileceğini ortaya koymuştur. Bu nedenle bizim tercihimiz seçilmiş yüksek riskli olgularda D-J stent kullanılması ve kadavradan yapılan nakillerde olası cerrahi komplikasyon riskini göz önünde bulundurarak D-J stent kullanma indikasyonlarının daha geniş tutulmasıdır. Sadece seçilmiş olgularda stent kullanılması, stent yerleştirmenin getirdiği sorunlardan korunarak cerrahi komplikasyonları azaltacaktır

Evaluation of public's perception of scar cosmesis after thyroidectomy: results of a survey of Turkish versus South Korean individuals

Purpose: Visible scars on the neck caused by thyroid surgery give rise to significant aesthetic, functional, and psychosocial problems. The objective of this study is to comparatively investigate the public perception of neck scar cosmesis in Turkish and South Korean populations.Methods: This survey was prepared to collect participants' demographic and socioeconomic data and determine their perception of scar cosmesis on the neck and consisted of 15 questions. One thousand thirty-nine individuals who did not undergo thyroid surgery completed the survey. The P-values of 0.05 were deemed to indicate statistical significance.Results: There were 1,039 respondents, of whom 525 (50.5%) were Turkish and 514 (49.5%) were South Korean. South Korean respondents stated that they would be significantly more uncomfortable with the thought of having a scar due to thyroid surgery, compared to the Turkish respondents (P 0.001). The South Korean respondents stated that they would be significantly more concerned about the scar's length, thickness, and darkening color, compared to the Turkish respondents (P 0.001 for all cases).Conclusion: Patients' expectations, which are affected by various sociodemographic factors and cultural characteristics, are as important as the medical condition when deciding on the type of thyroid surgery. The study findings clearly indicated that the South Korean population would be significantly more uncomfortable with having a scar on the neck, compared to the Turkish population. Therefore, in selected cases, a scarless thyroidectomy approach, such as transoral endoscopic thyroidectomy, vestibular approach may be preferable for societies like South Korea