A Case Report Of Concurrence Of Aberrant Extracranial Internal Carotid Artery And Nonrecurrent Laryngeal Nerve In A Patient Of Advanced Thyroid Carcinoma Invading Hypopharynx

Aberrant extracranial internal carotid artery and nonrecurrent laryngeal nerve (NRLN) are neurovascular anomalies, which clinicians should be aware of to prevent severe complications while performing transoral or open surgery in the head and neck area. These two variants can occur simultaneously because of similar etiology of embryological maldevelopment of arch arteries. In this study, a 64-year-old woman complaining of hoarseness presented a bulge in the left hypopharynx. A contrasted computed tomography scan indicated left thyroid mass with hypopharynx invasion, accompanied by right aberrant extracranial internal carotid artery and subclavian artery. Fine needle aspiration biopsy of the mass revealed papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC). She underwent total thyroidectomy, partial hypopharyngectomy, neck dissection, and tracheotomy. Intraoperatively, a right NRLN was found above the level of the cricothyroid junction that entered the larynx. The patient did not present severe complications postoperatively. Radioactive iodine therapy was applied after the surgery. At the 3-year follow-up, she remained cancer-free, and the hoarseness has improved. This is the first report of concurrent aberrant extracranial internal carotid artery and NRLN. NRLN of right side can be predicted in the computed tomography scan by the sign of the right subclavian artery origining from the left side of the aortic arch and running an abnormal course between the esophagus and the vertebra. Meanwhile, aberrant extracranial internal carotid artery may occur simultaneously. Recognition of aberrant neurovascular structures enables clinicians to prevent severe surgical complications.