Does Fluorescence With or Without Indocyanine Green Improve Parathyroid Identification and Preservation

May 5, 2026 updated by: Herbert Chen, University of Alabama at Birmingham
The aim of this study is to determine if fluorescence with or without indocyanine green can facilitate safe and accurate thyroid and parathyroid surgery.

Study Overview

Status

Terminated

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

The accurate identification of the parathyroid gland is a crucial aspect of thyroid and parathyroid surgery. Failing to recognize the parathyroid gland during thyroidectomy can result in the inadvertent removal of the gland, leading to postoperative hypocalcemia. On the other hand, during parathyroidectomy, there is a risk of mistaking other structures, such as lymph nodes, for parathyroid adenomas, which can leave the patient without a cure. Currently UAB employs intraoperative PTH or radioactive isotope techniques in conjunction with surgeon judgment. However, both methods have limitations, including being time-consuming, posing logistical challenges, and not providing feedback before gland removal.

Parathyroid fluorescence is a relatively new technology. It was initially discovered that the parathyroid gland emits fluorescence, which distinguishes it from the surrounding tissues. Additionally, indocyanine green dye is readily taken up by the parathyroid gland, making its detection easy to the naked eye. Research has demonstrated that parathyroid fluorescence, with or without indocyanine green, is not only safe but also helps reduce postoperative hypocalcemia and locate lesions in patients with imaging-negative parathyroid adenomas. However, the current use of parathyroid fluorescence is not standardized, and further studies are needed to explore its clinical utility in terms of cure rates and postoperative complications.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

417

Phase

  • Phase 4

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Alabama
      • Birmingham, Alabama, United States, 35233
        • UAB Callahan Eye

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • age greater than 18 years old

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Patients with iodine or shellfish allergies would be excluded.
  • Patients with allergy to indocyanine green.
  • Pregnancy

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Diagnostic
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Parathyroid patients
patients who require parathyroid identification and preservation during parathyroid surgery maneuver
Drug: Indocyanine green
ICG Administration: All enrolled patients with scheduled thyroidectomy or parathyroidectomy will receive a standard cervical incision that afford access to either side of neck. Following sufficient exposure of thyroid, 25 mg of indocyanine green (ICG), reconstituted in 10 ml of sterile water, will be administered intravenously. A dosage of 1 ml of this solution will be injected into a peripheral IV line, followed by a 5 ml flush of normal saline to ensure the propagation of the dye within the vascular compartment.
Device: SPY Portable Handheld Imaging
Fluorescent Imaging: Approximately 30 seconds post-administration, the parathyroid glands are expected to exhibit fluorescence under near-infrared imaging. The emitted fluorescence is anticipated to persist for approximately 20 minutes, allowing ample time for intraoperative evaluation of parathyroid viability and perfusion
Other Names:
  • SPY-PHI

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Percentage of Parathyroid Glands identified by ICG
Time Frame: 20 minutes

Measuring the percentage of the number of glands per participant that emit fluorescence.

ICG Administration: All enrolled patients with scheduled thyroidectomy or parathyroidectomy will receive a standard cervical incision that afford access to either side of neck. Following sufficient exposure of thyroid, 25 mg of indocyanine green (ICG), reconstituted in 10 ml of sterile water, will be administered intravenously. A dosage of 1 ml of this solution will be injected into a peripheral IV line, followed by a 5 ml flush of normal saline to ensure the propagation of the dye within the vascular compartment.

Fluorescent Imaging: Approximately 30 seconds post-administration, the parathyroid glands are expected to exhibit fluorescence under near-infrared imaging. The emitted fluorescence is anticipated to persist for approximately 20 minutes, allowing ample time for intraoperative evaluation of parathyroid viability and perfusion.
20 minutes

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

University of Alabama at Birmingham

Collaborators

Stryker Nordic

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Herbert Chen, MD, University of Alabama at Birmingham

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

April 11, 2024

Primary Completion (Actual)

May 5, 2026

Study Completion (Actual)

May 5, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

December 5, 2023

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

December 5, 2023

First Posted (Actual)

December 13, 2023

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

May 6, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

May 5, 2026

Last Verified

May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • IRB-300011872
  • Stryker (Other Identifier: Stryker)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

Yes

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

Yes

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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