Detection and morphology of thymic remnants after video-assisted thoracoscopic extended thymectomy (VATET) in patients with myasthenia gravis.

Thymectomy is often an extremely useful therapeutic procedure in myasthenia gravis (MG) and is usually indicated for adult patients with generalized disease. Because remnants of thymus may remain in extrathymic fat, an extended thymectomy is recommended. A new surgical approach without sternotomy: video-assisted thoracoscopic extended thymectomy (VATET) was performed in 30 MG patients. The weight of removed thymus ranged from 10.8 to 113 grams. The weight of fatty tissue removed from pretracheal, anterior mediastinal and costophrenic areas ranged from 6.3 to 74.8 grams. Histological examination revealed thymic remnants in 14.8% of pretracheal fat samples and in 33.3% of samples from anterior mediastinal plus costophrenic areas. These findings indicate that VATET is a radical procedure and may be the first choice surgery for young female MG patients, since aesthetic sequelae are reduced compared to procedures involving sternotomy.