Systemic tumor embolisms after pulmonary resections for malignancy are rare, but usually severe and sometimes fatal. Here, we report a case of a 70-year-old woman who underwent pulmonary resection for lung cancer and subsequently developed acute arterial occlusion of the lower extremities caused by a tumorous embolus.
Aged ; Embolectomy ; Embolism* ; Female ; Femoral Artery ; Humans ; Lower Extremity ; Lung Neoplasms* ; Lung* ; Neoplastic Cells, Circulating

The extent of resection and release of the trachea is important for successful anastomosis. Bilateral bronchial dissection is one of the release techniques for resection of the lower trachea. We present the experience of cervical video-assisted mediastinoscopic bilateral bronchial release for long segmental resection and anastomosis of the lower trachea.
Mediastinoscopy ; Trachea

A 49-year-old male presented with chills and a fever. Five years previously, he underwent ascending aorta and aortic arch replacement using the elephant trunk technique for DeBakey type 1 aortic dissection. The preoperative evaluation found an esophago-paraprosthetic fistula between the prosthetic graft and the esophagus. Multiple-stage surgery was performed with appropriate antibiotic and antifungal management. First, we performed esophageal exclusion and drainage of the perigraft abscess. Second, we removed the previous graft, debrided the abscess, and performed an in situ re-replacement of the ascending aorta, aortic arch, and proximal descending thoracic aorta, with separate replacement of the innominate artery, left common carotid artery, and extra-anatomical bypass of the left subclavian artery. Finally, staged esophageal reconstruction was performed via transthoracic anastomosis. The patient's postoperative course was unremarkable and the patient has done well without dietary problems or recurrent infections over one and a half years of follow-up.
Abscess ; Aorta ; Aorta, Thoracic ; Brachiocephalic Trunk ; Carotid Artery, Common ; Chills ; Drainage ; Elephants ; Esophagus ; Fever ; Fistula* ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Subclavian Artery ; Transplants*

BACKGROUND: Following major lung resection, patients have routinely been monitored in the intensive care unit (ICU). Recently, however, patients are increasingly being placed in a general thoracic ward (GTW). We investigated the safety and efficacy of the GTW care after lobectomy for lung cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 316 patients who had undergone lobectomy for lung cancer were reviewed. These patients were divided into two groups: 275 patients were cared for in the ICU while 41 patients were care for in the GTW immediately post-operation. After propensity score matching, postoperative complications and hospital costs were analyzed. Risk factors for early complications were analyzed with the whole cohort. RESULTS: Early complications (until the end of the first postoperative day) occurred in 11 (3.5%) patients. Late complications occurred in 42 patients (13.3%). After propensity score matching, the incidence of early complications, late complications, and mortality were not different between the two groups. The mean expense was higher in the ICU group. Risk factors for early complications were cardiac comorbidities and low expected forced expiratory volume in one second. The location of postoperative care had no influence on outcome. CONCLUSION: Immediate postoperative care after lobectomy for lung cancer in a GTW was safe and cost-effective without compromising outcomes in low-risk patients.
Comorbidity ; Forced Expiratory Volume ; Hospital Costs ; Humans ; Incidence ; Intensive Care Units ; Lung ; Lung Neoplasms ; Postoperative Care ; Postoperative Complications ; Propensity Score ; Risk Factors

Esophagectomy can result in various postoperative nutrition-related complications that may impair the nutritional status of the patient. In our institution, we usually initiate 16-hour continuous jejunostomy feeding using an enteral feeding pump on postoperative day 2 as a routine protocol after esophagectomy. The target calorie intake was achieved in 6-7 days with this protocol, which is longer than that required with other recently reported feeding protocols. Accordingly, early jejunostomy feeding protocol, which starts on postoperative day 1 and continues for 24 hours was attempted. In the present report, we described 3 cases of early 24-hour continuous jejunostomy feeding after esophagectomy. The use of this new protocol reduced the duration required to achieve the target calorie intake as less than 5 days without any enteral feeding-related complications.
Enteral Nutrition ; Esophagectomy* ; Humans ; Jejunostomy* ; Nutritional Status

Systemic tumor embolisms after pulmonary resections for malignancy are rare, but usually severe and sometimes fatal. Here, we report a case of a 70-year-old woman who underwent pulmonary resection for lung cancer and subsequently developed acute arterial occlusion of the lower extremities caused by a tumorous embolus.
Aged ; Embolectomy ; Embolism ; Female ; Femoral Artery ; Humans ; Lower Extremity ; Lung Neoplasms ; Lung ; Neoplastic Cells, Circulating

PURPOSE: We investigated current trends in lung cancer surgery and identified demographic and social factors related to changes in these trends. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We estimated the incidence of lung cancer surgery using a procedure code-based approach provided by the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service (http://opendata.hira.or.kr). The population data were obtained every year from 2010 to 2014 from the Korean Statistical Information Service (http://kosis.kr/). The annual percent change (APC) and statistical significance were calculated using the Joinpoint software. RESULTS: From January 2010 to December 2014, 25,687 patients underwent 25,921 lung cancer surgeries, which increased by 45.1% from 2010 to 2014. The crude incidence rate of lung cancer surgery in each year increased significantly (APC, 9.5; p < 0.05). The male-to-female ratio decreased from 2.1 to 1.6 (APC, −6.3; p < 0.05). The incidence increased in the age group of ≥ 70 years for both sexes (male: APC, 3.7; p < 0.05; female: APC, 5.96; p < 0.05). Furthermore, the proportion of female patients aged ≥ 65 years increased (APC, 7.2; p < 0.05), while that of male patients aged < 65 years decreased (APC, −3.9; p < 0.05). The proportions of segmentectomies (APC, 17.8; p < 0.05) and lobectomies (APC, 7.5; p < 0.05) increased, while the proportion of pneumonectomies decreased (APC, −6.3; p < 0.05). Finally, the proportion of patients undergoing surgery in Seoul increased (APC, 1.1; p < 0.05), while the proportion in other areas decreased (APC, −1.5; p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: An increase in the use of lung cancer surgery in elderly patients and female patients, and a decrease in the proportion of patients requiring extensive pulmonary resection were identified. Furthermore, centralization of lung cancer surgery was noted.
Aged ; Female ; Humans ; Incidence ; Information Services ; Insurance, Health ; Lung Neoplasms* ; Lung* ; Male ; Mastectomy, Segmental ; Pneumonectomy ; Republic of Korea ; Seoul ; Thoracic Surgery

A 76-year-old male underwent a left upper lobectomy with wedge resection of the superior segment of the left lower lobe using video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) for non-small-cell lung cancer of the left upper lobe. He presented with shortness of breath, fever, and leukocytosis. Chest radiography showed atelectasis at the remaining left lower lobe. Bronchoscopy revealed narrowing of the left lower bronchus with purulent secretion, and computed tomography showed downward kinking of the left lower lobar bronchus. He underwent exploratory VATS, and intraoperative findings showed an inferiorly kinked left lower lobar bronchus with upward displacement of the left lower lobe. After adhesiolysis, the kinked bronchus was straightened, and bronchopexy was performed to the pericardium to prevent the recurrence of bronchial kinking. Also, the inferior pulmonary ligament was reattached to prevent upward displacement. Postoperative follow-up bronchoscopy revealed no evidence of residual bronchial obstruction, and chest radiography showed no atelectasis thereafter.
Aged ; Airway Obstruction ; Bronchi* ; Bronchoscopy ; Dyspnea ; Fever ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Leukocytosis ; Ligaments ; Lung Neoplasms ; Male ; Pericardium ; Pulmonary Atelectasis ; Radiography ; Recurrence ; Thoracic Surgery, Video-Assisted ; Thorax

BACKGROUND: Periprocedural treatment with high-dose statins is known to have cardioprotective and pleiotropic effects, such as anti-thrombotic and anti-inflammatory actions. We aimed to assess the efficacy of high-dose rosuvastatin loading in patients with stable angina undergoing off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (OPCAB). MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 142 patients with stable angina who were scheduled to undergo surgical myocardial revascularization were randomized to receive either pre-treatment with 60-mg rosuvastatin (rosuvastatin group, n=71) or no pre-treatment (control group, n=71) before OPCAB. The primary endpoint was the 30-day incidence of major adverse cardiac events (MACEs). The secondary endpoint was the change in the degree of myocardial ischemia as evaluated with creatine kinase-myocardial band (CK-MB) and troponin T (TnT). RESULTS: There were no significant intergroup differences in preoperative risk factors or operative strategy. MACEs within 30 days after OPCAB occurred in one patient (1.4%) in the rosuvastatin group and four patients (5.6%) in the control group, respectively (p=0.37). Preoperative CK-MB and TnT were not different between the groups. After OPCAB, the mean maximum CK-MB was significantly higher in the control group (rosuvastatin group 10.7+/-9.75 ng/mL, control group 14.6+/-12.9 ng/mL, p=0.04). Furthermore, the mean levels of maximum TnT were significantly higher in the control group (rosuvastatin group 0.18+/-0.16 ng/mL, control group 0.39+/-0.70 ng/mL, p=0.02). CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that high-dose rosuvastatin loading before OPCAB surgery did not result in a significant reduction of 30-day MACEs. However, high-dose rosuvastatin reduced myocardial ischemia after OPCAB.
Angina, Stable ; Coronary Artery Bypass ; Coronary Artery Bypass, Off-Pump ; Creatine ; Fluorobenzenes ; Humans ; Incidence ; Myocardial Ischemia ; Myocardial Revascularization ; Pyrimidines ; Risk Factors ; Sulfonamides ; Transplants ; Trinitrotoluene ; Troponin T ; Rosuvastatin Calcium

A 47-year-old man with myasthenia gravis (MG) was admitted for a lung transplant. He had bronchiolitis obliterans after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation due to acute myeloid leukemia. MG developed after stem cell transplantation. Bilateral sequential lung transplantations and a total thymectomy were performed. The patient underwent right diaphragmatic plication simultaneously due to preoperatively diagnosed right diaphragmatic paralysis. A tracheostomy was performed and bilevel positive airway pressure (BiPAP) was applied on postoperative days 8 and 9, respectively. The patient was transferred to the general ward on postoperative day 12, successfully weaned off BiPAP on postoperative day 18, and finally discharged on postoperative day 62.
Bronchiolitis Obliterans ; Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation ; Humans ; Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute ; Lung Transplantation* ; Lung* ; Middle Aged ; Myasthenia Gravis* ; Patients' Rooms ; Respiratory Paralysis ; Stem Cell Transplantation ; Thymectomy ; Tracheostomy