Study on the effectiveness of thermoablative techniques
di Francesco Unali
June 18, 2021 - To eliminate thyroid nodules, in addition to traditional surgery, it is possible to use thermal ablation techniques such as laser and radiofrequency, minimally invasive treatments carried out through the release of thermal energy. The prospective study LARA (Laser ablation versus radiofrequency ablation), carried out at the Santa Maria Goretti Hospital in Latina with the collaboration of theUniversità Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, compared the effectiveness of the two methods for the first time ever.
The work was published on Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, one of the leading endocrinology journals in the world. If it is true that both techniques are effective, as already indicated in the literature, the LARA study showed that the rradiofrequency guarantees a more significant reduction in the volume of the nodule one year after treatment. The reduction of the nodule reaches 70% in radiofrequency against 60% in laser. This reduction is obtained with a single session for both techniques, with quick and long-lasting results. "Both thermoablative methods are effective with limited side effects - explains the dr. Andrea Palermo, doctor of the Metabolic Diseases Unit of the Campus Bio-Medico University Hospital - They can reduce the rate of surgical operations for benign pathologies. The nodules that seem to respond best to ablative techniques are solid or mixed ones with a predominantly solid component". The advantages of these procedures also derive from the low number of complications, From cost reduction and the possibility of carrying them out on an outpatient basis. Furthermore, compared to traditional surgery, thermoablative techniques they leave no scars and keep the function of the thyroid gland almost always intact, which is why the patient does not have to start replacement therapy with thyroid hormone following their use.
