No abstract available.
Adult ; Biopsy ; Disease Progression ; Fatal Outcome ; Humans ; Lung Neoplasms/*complications/diagnostic imaging/secondary/surgery ; Lymphatic Metastasis ; Male ; Pleural Effusion, Malignant/diagnostic imaging/*etiology/therapy ; Pneumothorax/diagnostic imaging/*etiology/therapy ; Sarcoma/*complications/diagnostic imaging/secondary/surgery ; Soft Tissue Neoplasms/*pathology ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; Treatment Outcome

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of single-port video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) in the treatment of secondary spontaneous pneumothorax (SSP). METHODS: Twenty-four patients who were scheduled to undergo single-port VATS for SSP were studied. The medical records of the patients were retrospectively reviewed. The mean follow-up duration was 26.1+/-19.8 months. In order to evaluate the feasibility of single-port VATS for SSP, the postoperative results of single-port VATS (n=15) in patients with emphysema were compared with those of emphysematous patients who underwent three-port VATS (n=15) during the study period. RESULTS: Single-port VATS was feasible in 19 of 24 patients (79.2%), while an additional port was needed in five patients. In the single-port VATS patients, the median operation time, duration of chest tube drainage, and hospital stay were 84.0 minutes, one day, and two days, respectively. Postoperative complications included prolonged chest tube drainage for more than five days (n=1), wound infection (n=1), and vocal fold palsy (n=1). No recurrence of pneumothorax was observed during the follow-up period. The median operation time, duration of chest tube drainage, and hospital stay of the emphysematous patients who underwent single-port VATS were shorter than those who underwent three-port VATS group (p<0.05 for all parameters). CONCLUSION: Single-port VATS proved to be a feasible procedure in the treatment of patients with secondary spontaneous pneumothorax.
Chest Tubes ; Drainage ; Emphysema ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Length of Stay ; Medical Records ; Pneumothorax* ; Postoperative Complications ; Recurrence ; Retrospective Studies ; Thoracic Surgery, Video-Assisted* ; Vocal Cord Paralysis ; Wound Infection

OBJECTIVETo assess the clinical value of single-port video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) for treatment of pulmonary diseases.

METHODSFrom October, 2009 to December, 2013, 105 patients with pulmonary diseases were scheduled for single-pore VATS for pulmonary lobectomy (19 patients), wedge resection of the lung (34 patients), and bullae resection and pleurodesis for spontaneous pneumothorax or pulmonary bleb (52 patients).

RESULTSOf the 105 patients, 101 patients underwent single-port VATS; the procedure was converted to open thoracotomy in 1 patient and to conventional three-port VATS in 2 patients. The operative time was 50.6∓36.8 min (20-200 min) with intraoperative blood loss of 70∓56.9 ml (10-300 ml), thoracic drainage time of 4.2∓3.2 days (2-14 days), and postoperative hospital stay of 5.4∓3.8 days (3-16 days). Postoperative complications of the procedures included prolonged air leakage (6 cases) and atelectasis (2 cases). All the other patients recovered smoothly without serious complications.

CONCLUSIONSingle-port VATS is a safe and efficient procedure that allows rapid postoperative recovery and is a method of choice for selected patients with pulmonary diseases.

Humans ; Length of Stay ; Lung ; surgery ; Lung Diseases ; surgery ; Pneumothorax ; Postoperative Complications ; Postoperative Period ; Thoracic Surgery, Video-Assisted ; Thoracotomy

PURPOSE: Several risk factors for development of reexpansion pulmonary edema (REPE) after drainage of pneumothoraces have been reported, but the association between the method of thoracostomy and the development of REPE is unknown. The aim of this study was to compare the frequency of REPE after treatment of spontaneous pneumothorax with trocar or hemostat assisted closed thoracostomy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We performed a prospective, observational study including 173 patients with spontaneous pneumothorax who visited the emergency department from January 2007 to December 2008. In 2007, patients were treated with hemostat-assisted drainage, whereas patients in 2008 were treated with trocar-assisted drainage. The main outcome was the development of REPE, determined by computed tomography of the chest 8 hours after closed thoracostomy. Outcomes in both groups were compared using univariate and multivariate analyses. RESULTS: Ninety-two patients were included, 48 (42 males) of which underwent hemostat-assisted drainage and 44 (41 males) underwent trocar-assisted drainage. The groups were similar in mean age (24+/-10 vs. 26+/-14 respectively). The frequencies of REPE after hemostat- and trocar-assisted drainage were 63% (30 patients) and 86% (38 patients) respectively (p=0.009). In multivariate analysis, trocar-assisted drainage was the major contributing factor for developing REPE (odds ratio=5.7, 95% confidence interval, 1.5-21). Age, gender, size of pneumothorax, symptom duration and laboratory results were similar between the groups. CONCLUSION: Closed thoracostomy using a trocar is associated with an increased risk of REPE compared with hemostat-assisted drainage in patients with spontaneous pneumothorax.
Adult ; Female ; Hemostatic Techniques ; Humans ; Male ; Multivariate Analysis ; Pneumothorax/*complications/*surgery ; Prospective Studies ; Pulmonary Edema/*diagnosis/etiology/*surgery ; Risk Factors ; Surgical Instruments ; Thoracostomy/*adverse effects/*methods ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; Treatment Outcome ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the safety and efficacy of modified technique for removing Nuss bar after Nuss procedure. METHODS: We reviewed 186 patients undergoing bar removal after repair of pectus excavatum with Nuss procedure at our institution from December 2008 to February 2012. All patients had unilateral incision (metallic stabilizers have been used on one side in all patients). Under general anesthesia with single lumen tracheal tube or laryngeal mask, with the patient lying down in supine position, the bar was pulled out along the thoracic wall without overturning or straightening. RESULTS: Totally 132 patients (71.0%) had the bar removed 2 years after the Nuss procedure, 1 (0.5%) removed within 1 year and 53 (28.5%) removed over 2 and half years. The operation time for bar removal was 9-20 (13.1 ± 3.4) min, and the operative blood loss was 3-20 (5.2 ± 2.7) mL. There was no hemorrhage. Three patients (1.6%) developed mild pneumothorax and none showed infection of incision after the operation. All patients were discharged 1 day after the surgery and followed up for 4-48 (21.4 ± 6.8) months. Recurrence was found in the one who which had the bar removed within 1 year (0.5%). CONCLUSION With modified procedures, Nuss bar can be easily and safely removed 2 years or longer after the Nuss operation. After removing the metallic stabilizer, the bar should be turned and then pulled out along the original surgical incision without bending or turning.
Adolescent ; Blood Loss, Surgical ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; China ; epidemiology ; Device Removal ; methods ; Female ; Funnel Chest ; surgery ; Humans ; Male ; Orthopedic Fixation Devices ; Pneumothorax ; epidemiology ; etiology ; Postoperative Complications ; epidemiology ; prevention & control ; Prostheses and Implants ; Sternum ; surgery ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo explore the safety and effectiveness of artificial pneumothorax in semi-prone position applied to video-assisted thoracoscopic resection of esophageal cancer.

METHODSThe clinical data of 59 patients with esophageal cancer, who underwent thoracoscopic resection of esophageal cancer during April 2010 to April 2011, were reviewed and analyzed retrospectively to evaluate the operation time, lymph node dissection and metastatic nodes, post-operative complications, and comparison of the pre- and post-operative TNM staging. There were 9 cases of the upper thoracic esophagus, 44 of the thoracic segment esophagus, and 6 of the lower thoracic segment esophagus. One case of esophageal adenocarcinoma and 1 case of esophageal small cell carcinoma were treated by 2 cycles of neoadjuvant chemotherapy. The patients were in semi-prone position, and an artificial pneunothorax was created with injection of CO2 (at a pressure of 6 - 8 mmHg) via the trocar. The entire thoracic esophagus was dissociated, mediastinal lymph nodes dissected by thoracoscopy, stomach dissociated, abdominal lymph nodes were dissected through abdominal incision, and esophagogastric anastomosis was performed.

RESULTSAmong the 59 patients, 51 patients completed the thoracoscopic surgery, and 8 were converted to thoracotomy, due to azygos arch bleeding in two cases, membranous tracheal perforation in one case, inferior vena cava bleeding in one case, bronchial artery bleeding in one case, and dense pleural adhesions in three cases. The average operation time of the thoracoscopic surgery was 220.3 (180 - 330) min, and the average operation time for the operation in the thoracic part was 96.6 (80 - 120) min. The average blood loss was 220.8 (100 - 300) ml, the postoperative chest tube was placed for 2 to 4 days (average 3.2), postoperative drainage volume was: 60 - 300 ml (201.6 ml in average) in the 1st day, 30 - 280 ml in the 2nd day, and 0 - 160 ml in the 3rd day. The length of hospital stay was 11.5 days (9 - 14 d). No mortality, anastomotic fistula, and chylothorax occurred in our patient group. One case of arrhythmia, two cases of transient hoarseness, and two cases of pulmonary infection were all improved under symptomatic treatment. The overall complication rate was 9.8% (5/51). 714 lymph nodes were dissected in the 51 patient-group, with an average 14 lymph nodes per patient, including 512 chest lymph nodes (10 on average). The pathology report showed right recurrent laryngeal nerve lymph node metastasis in 6 cases, left recurrent laryngeal nerve lymph node metastasis in 3 cases, subcarinal lymph node metastasis in 2 cases, lesion lymph node metastasis in 1 case, and esophagogastric junction lymph node metastasis in 1 case.

CONCLUSIONSVideo-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) conducted in semi-prone position combined with artificial pneumothorax for the treatment of esophageal cancer is technically feasible and safe, as effective as open thoracic surgery, not only to maintain the intact thorax, significantly lighter postoperative pain, and reduces perioperative complication, but also better wound appearance. The operation is welcomed by patients and meets the requirements of the development of esophageal surgery, and it is a quite ideal treatment of early and intermediate stage esophageal cancer.

Adenocarcinoma ; pathology ; surgery ; Aged ; Carcinoma, Small Cell ; pathology ; surgery ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell ; pathology ; surgery ; Drainage ; Esophageal Neoplasms ; pathology ; surgery ; Esophagectomy ; methods ; Female ; Humans ; Lymph Node Excision ; Lymphatic Metastasis ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Staging ; Operative Time ; Pneumothorax, Artificial ; Postoperative Complications ; Prone Position ; Retrospective Studies ; Thoracic Surgery, Video-Assisted ; Thoracotomy

Absorbable Implants ; Adult ; Aged ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pneumothorax ; etiology ; surgery ; Polyglycolic Acid ; Silicosis ; complications ; surgery ; Surgical Sponges

BACKGROUND: Making the histologic diagnosis of small pulmonary nodules and ground glass opacity (GGO) lesions is difficult. CT-guided percutaneous needle biopsies often fail to provide enough specimen for making the diagnosis. Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) can be inefficient for treating non-palpable lesions. Preoperative localization of small intrapulmonary lesions provides a more obvious target to facilitate performing intraoperative resection. We evaluated the efficacy of CT-guided localization with using a hook wire and this was followed by VATS for making the histologic diagnosis of small intrapulmonary nodules and GGO lesions. MATERIAL AND METHOD: Eighteen patients (13 males) were included in this study from August 2005 to March 2008. 18 intrapulmonary lesions underwent preoperative localization by using a CT-guided a hook wire system prior to performing VATS resection for intrapulmonary lesions and GGO lesions. The clinical data such as the accuracy of localization, the rate of conversion-to-thoracotomy, the operation time, the postoperative complications and the histology of the pulmonary lesion were retrospectively collected. RESULT: Eighteen VATS resections were performed in 18 patients. Preoperative CT-guided localization with a hook-wire was successful in all the patients. Dislodgement of a hook wire was observed in one case. There was no conversion to thoracotomy. The median diameter of lesions was 8 mm (range: 3~15 mm). The median depth of the lesions from the pleural surfaces was 5.5 mm (range: 1~30 mm). The median interval between preoperative CT-guided localization with a hook-wire and VATS was 34.5 min (range: 10~ 226 min). The median operative time was 43.5 min (range: 26~83 min). In two patients, clinically insignificant pneumothorax developed after CT-guided localization with a hook-wire and there were no other complications. Histological examinations confirmed 8 primary lung cancers, 3 cases of metastases, 3 cases of inflammation, 2 intrapulmonary lymph nodes and 2 other benign lesions. CONCLUSION: CT-guided localization with a hook-wire followed by VATS for treating small intrapulmonary nodules and GGO lesions provided a low conversion thoracotomy rate, a short operation time and few localization-related or postoperative complications. This procedure was efficient to confirm intrapulmonary lesions and GGO lesions.
Biopsy, Needle ; Glass ; Humans ; Inflammation ; Lung Neoplasms ; Lymph Nodes ; Neoplasm Metastasis ; Operative Time ; Pneumothorax ; Postoperative Complications ; Retrospective Studies ; Thoracic Surgery, Video-Assisted ; Thoracotomy

BACKGROUND: Morbidity, the use of analgesics, the amount of postoperative drainage and the postoperative hospital stay were reduced in VATS for pneumothorax. However, some authors preferred minithoracotomy to VATS because the rate of recurrence after VATS were between 5% and 10%. Therefore, we present a modified thoracoscopic bullectomy (MTB) which we believe has the advantages of conventional VATS and minithoracotomy. MATERIAL AND METHOD: Sixty-six patients who received the operation from January 2002 to December 2002 were divided into 3 groups. Twenty-six patients were treated by axillary minithoracotomy and thirteen by conventional VATS and 18 by modified thoracoscopic bullectomy. The mean age was 21.9 years (range, 16~35 years) for minithoracotomy group, 20.6 years (range, 17~28 years) for conventional VATS group and 22.6 years (range, 16~39 years) for MTB group. The mean follow-ups were 11.4months for minithoracotomy group, 9.5 months for conventional VATS group and 4.7 months for MTB group. RESULT: The mean duration of operation was 55.79+/-23.35 minutes in MTB and 44.23+/-19.24 minutes in conventional VATS (p=0.333). The number of staplers being used was 1.63+/-0.76 in MTB, 1.41+/-0.64 in minithoracotomy (p=0.663), and 2.92+/-1.19 in conventional VATS (p<0.001). The duration of indwelling chest tube was 1.63+/-0.76 day in MTB, 4.07+/-1.41 day in minithoracotomy (p<0.001) and 4.46+/-2.33 day in conventional VATS (p<0.001). Hospital length of stay was 3.26+/-0.81 day in MTB, 6.04+/-2.21 day in minithoracotomy (p<0.001) and 6.69+/-3.33 day in conventional VATS (p<0.001). The number of postoperative complication and recurrence were 2 in minithoracotomy (7.4%), 5 in conventional VATS (38.5%) and 1 in MTB (5.6%). CONCLUSION: Modified thoracoscopic bullectomy is an effective procedure in the treatment of spontaneous pneumothorax.
Analgesics ; Chest Tubes ; Drainage ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Length of Stay ; Pneumothorax ; Postoperative Complications ; Recurrence ; Thoracic Surgery, Video-Assisted ; Thoracoscopy

BACKGROUND: Recently, video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery(VATS) has been accepted as the standard treatment for spontaneous pneumothorax. However, comparatively high recurrent rate and cost-effectiveness are still controversial. The recurrent rate after bullectomy with VATS is reported to be as high as 5-10% whereas it is below 2% in thoracotomy. There is no statistical report on cost-effectiveness in Korean health care system. Material and METHOD: Our retrospective analysis was performed on 173 cases of surgically treated primary spontaneous pneumothorax at Kangbuk Samsung Hospital, Sungkyunkwan University, School of medicine, from January 1997 to July 1999. There were 104 cases VATS and 69 cases of thoracotomy. We analysed the operative indication, gender, operating time, amounts of the staples used, tube drainage, tube stay time, postoperative complications, recurrent rate, operation room cost, and total cost. RESULT: Operation time was 71.3 +/-29.5minutes in VATS group and 141 +/-52minutes in thoracotomy group(P<0.05). The postoperative tube stay and hospital stay are 3.93days and 7.5days in VATS group and 7.0 days and 13.4days in thoracotomy group, respectively(P<0.05, P<0.05). The number of recurrence after the operation in VATS group(6/104, 5.6%) was significantly higher than in thoracotomy group (1/69, 1.4%; P<0.05). The operation room cost was significantly higher in VATS group than in thoracotomy group (won 1,202,192 +/-178,992, won 1,005,669 +/-311,531; P<0.05), but considering the total cost, there was no significant difference between the two groups( won 1,946,110 +/- 487,440, won 1,793,912 +/-308,079; P=0.18). CONCLUSION: Although operative procedure and discharge policy may affect the recurrent rate and cost, there was no benefit of cost-effectiveness in VATS group and recurrent rate was higher in VATS group than in throacotomy group. It would be helpful to set up a prospective trial comparing cost and results of VATS versus minithoracotomy.
Cost-Benefit Analysis ; Delivery of Health Care ; Drainage ; Humans ; Length of Stay ; Pneumothorax* ; Postoperative Complications ; Recurrence ; Retrospective Studies ; Surgical Procedures, Operative ; Thoracic Surgery, Video-Assisted* ; Thoracoscopy ; Thoracotomy*