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With the advent of advanced video and laparoscopic techniques, new applications have been found for thoracoscopy's expanding role in thoracic surgery. Described herein are three cases of thoracoscopic sympathectomy for three different indications. The evaluation and surgical technique are described in detail. Thoracoscopic sympathectomy is an excellent alternative to open transthoracic approach.
With the recent popularization of video laparoscopic cholecystectomy comes a renewed interest in thoracoscopy and its clinical applications in intrathoracic disease. Successful video thoracoscopic dorsal sympathectomy was accomplished in a patient with causalgia of the right upper extremity with immediate and complete resolution of pain and vasomotor symptoms. Standard operative approaches to dorsal sympathectomy are technically difficult, having risks of major nerve injury and Horner's syndrome. Video thoracoscopic dorsal sympathectomy obviates these risks and should become the procedure of choice in the future.
In recent 3 years, six cases of diaphragmatic hernia caused by blunt trauma were treated surgically. Traumatic mechanics, appearance of rupture, associated injury, diagnostic procedure and surgical treatment are reviewed. All of them were survived with immediate surgical repair. Thoracoscopy is so useful to diagnose the right sided diaphragmatic hernia.
In the field of respiratory surgery there is a need for further research and clinical experience with thoracoscopic surgery. It has already proved excellent for pain reduction and mizing of the wound. We describe the method and results of thoracoscopic surgery, which was started in June, 1992. Twelve cases are reported. The procedure consist of : (1) trocar insertion, (2) observation by thoracoscopy, (3) lifting up and cutting off lung tissue, (4) drainage and removal of the trocar. The most important technique needed by the operator is the cooperative motion of both hands which handle forceps, GIA and other instruments. The two indications for thoracoscopic surgery are spontaneous pneumothorax (bullectomy) and diffuse interstitial pulmonary disease (biopsy). Our operation time was 50 to 145 minutes. No complication occurred on the eleven patients. Wound pain was controlled by diclofenac sodium (Voltaren) suppositories on the first day. The wounds (3 spots 2 cm in size) healed well.
We report four cases of esophageal leiomyoma removed through right video-thoracoscopy. The mucosa was accidently opened in 2 cases. Based on this initial experience, the advantages and drawbacks of the technique are discussed.
BACKGROUND: Patients with diffuse pulmonary infiltrates often require biopsy for a diagnosis. Standard operative therapy, open wedge resection via thoracotomy, is associated with known morbidity. We hypothesized that closed thoracoscopic wedge resection may result in reduced morbidity and decreased duration of hospital stay. This retrospective study compares open resection with thoracoscopic wedge resection in patients with diffuse pulmonary infiltrates. METHODS: Seventy-five patients with diffuse pulmonary infiltrates underwent diagnostic lung biopsy. Patients requiring mechanical ventilation and high levels of pressure support before biopsy were excluded from the study. Between March 1987 and September 1991, a total of 28 patients underwent open wedge resection via lateral thoracotomy. Since April 1991, a total of 47 patients underwent thoracoscopic resection. RESULTS: There was no difference between the groups in age, sex, presence of immunosuppression, or final pathologic diagnosis. Adequate tissue was obtained for pathologic diagnosis in all patients of both groups. All surgeons believed that thoracoscopic biopsy provided better visualization of the entire lung than did a limited thoracotomy. Mean operative time was 69 minutes for open biopsies and 93 minutes for thoracoscopic biopsies [p = 0.038]. Mean duration of chest tube drainage was not significantly different between the two groups. Duration of hospital stay was significantly less for thoracoscopic biopsy (4.9 days) than for open biopsy (12.2 days) (p = 0.018). Fourteen of 28 open biopsies resulted in complications compared with 9 of 47 closed biopsies (p = 0.009). There were 6 deaths among patients having open biopsies and 3 deaths among those having closed biopsies (p = not significant). CONCLUSION: A significant decrease in hospital stay was noted with thoracoscopic biopsy when compared with lung biopsy via the standard open approaches. Thoracoscopy provided excellent visualization and allowed for wedge resection that provided adequate tissue for diagnosis in patients with diffuse pulmonary interstitial disease.
Video-assisted thoracoscopy has recently evolved as an alternative to thoracotomy for several thoracic disorders. Spontaneous pneumothorax may be ideally suited for thoracoscopic management. Stapling of apical blebs and pleurodesis or pleurectomy can now be performed thoracoscopically in a fashion identical to the standard operation done through a lateral or axillary thoracotomy. We compared our results with thoracoscopic management of spontaneous pneumothorax in 26 patients (group I) with a group of 20 patients previously subjected to axillary thoracotomy (group II). Indications for operation, sex distribution, and average age (group I, 32.3 years; group II, 33.7 years) were comparable. Hospital stay was less in group I (2.88 +/- 0.99 days versus 4.47 +/- 1.07 days; p = 0.07), as was the use of parenteral narcotics after 48 hours (2/26 = 7.7% versus 14/20 = 70%; p = 0.01). There have been no recurrences to date (mean follow-up, 8 months) in the thoracoscopic group. Video-assisted thoracoscopic management of spontaneous pneumothorax allows performance of the standard surgical procedure while avoiding the thoracotomy incision. Video-assisted thoracoscopic management is safe and offers the potential benefits of shorter hospital stays and less pain.
We report a thoracoscopic partial resection of the lung for the peripheral lung tumor in a 66-year-old woman. Her chest roentgenogram and computed tomographic scan showed a single tumor 1.9 cm in diameter within the periphery of the right lower lobe. A solitary metastatic lung tumor of colon cancer, which was resected one year ago, was suspected. Partial resection of the lung involving this tumor was performed using the MULTIFIRE ENDO GIA 30 disposable surgical stapler under thoracoscopy. There was neither air leak nor bleeding at the resection line. Pathological examination of the tumor revealed benign localized pleural mesothelioma. Her postoperative course was uneventful and she was discharged from the hospital on the eighth postoperative day. Thoracoscopic pulmonary resection using EndoGIA is a safe technique for a peripheral lung tumor.
Personal experience of 42 videothoracoscopic operations is reported. From September 91 to May 92 we performed 10 major lung resections (1 pneumonectomy, 8 lobectomies, 1 segmentectomy) 9 wedge lung resections, 4 excisions of pulmonary bullae, 12 pleurectomies with or without apicectomy, 6 excisions of mediastinal masses (3 thymomas, 2 mediastinal cysts, 1 thoracic disembryoma), 1 removal of esophageal leiomyoma. No major complications occurred. Except for one patient submitted to bullectomy with pleurectomy who required a second thoracoscopy due to postoperative bleeding, all patients had excellent p.o. course. We describe technical details employed in different videothoracoscopic operations and discuss personal results and principles of videothoracoscopic approach. Different fields of videoendoscopic chest surgery are examined. Present data seem to advocate videothoracoscopic treatment for many thoracic diseases and also for major lung resections, due to its minimal trauma and little functional impairment. Nevertheless this still remains avant-garde surgery. Further improvement in endoscopic instrumentation is necessary and may lead to future extensions of videothoracoscopic surgical possibilities.
Recent advances in the technologies for minimal invasive surgery have expanded the indications for thoracoscopic surgery. The thoracoscopic approach is for various operations, including pleurectomy, decortication, pulmonary wedge resection, pericardial window, the approach of first choice. Other operations such as resection of tumors in the mediastinum or thoracic wall, lobectomies or others, can often be performed by thoracoscopy. Indications and technical details are described.
Minimally invasive techniques including closed laparoscopy and thoracoscopy as well as video-assisted procedures using limited open incisions provide an excellent alternative for treating vertebral osteomyelitis and tuberculous infections in the thoracic and lumbar spine. The traditional principles of surgical debridement and a stable interbody fusion are unchanged when applying endoscopic techniques. In the future, the spinal endoscopist will have available a larger selection of endoscopic instruments, more sophisticated video technology, and the development of anterior instrumentation systems to allow for rigid internal fixation. These advances, along with the surgeon's endoscopic experience and refined techniques, will further establish minimally invasive surgical techniques in the field of spinal surgery.
OBJECTIVES: Thoracic sympathectomy is the radical and usually definite treatment of palmar hyperhidrosis. Improvement of surgical endoscopy techniques makes it possible to perform the procedure through thoracoscopy, thus minimizing operative trauma and sequellae. However, thoracic sympathectomies give rise to a high rate of compensatory sweating which is the most important adverse effect of the technique. METHODS: We developed a technique of selective sympathectomy which only divides the rami communicanti from the first to the fourth thoracic ganglion. We performed 90 thoracic sympathectomies in 46 patients. They were performed in a truncal manner in 32 patients while it was selective in the last 14 patients. RESULTS: The success rate was 97.5% (2 failures). After reoperation of these 2 failures, the success rate was 100%. The global rate of compensatory sweating was 47.5%. In the 14 last patients who underwent a selective sympathectomy, only one complained of compensatory sweating. CONCLUSION: Endoscopic sympathectomy is an effective means of treating palmar hyperhidrosis. Rigorous technique should help reduce the risk of compensatory sweating.
From January '92 up to January '94 thoracoscopy was performed in 51 patients with recurrent pleural effusion: 49 of these patients underwent talc pleurodesis. 10 pleural mesotheliomas, 29 diffuse metastasic pleural involvement and 12 benign effusions were diagnosed. Intrapleural talc therapy allowed a definitive pleurodesis in 43 patients with a success rate of 87%.
Pulmonary lobectomy and mediastinal lymph node dissection was performed in 25 patients with Stage I lung cancer under thoracoscopic guidance using the two-windows method. A posterior skin incision (3 cm) and lateral skin incision (2 cm) were made in the 4th intercostal space centering on the inferior angle of the scapula. The site closest to the operating surgeon was used for direct vision, while the distant site was used for insertion of the thoracoscope. The mean operative time was 2 hours and 15 minutes, and the mean blood loss was 82.6 ml. The mean number of dissected mediastinal lymph nodes was 32. The length of hospitalization ranged from 5 to 17 days. Recovery was uneventful, and analgesics were not required by postoperative day 6. The two-windows method overcomes the three-dimentional inaccuracy due to the one-directional observation of the operative field employed during conventional thoracoscopy. In addition, since we developed this method for mediastinal lymph node dissection, the tracheal bifurcation can be confirmed under direct vision, increasing the accuracy of the procedure. The advantages of the two-window thoracoscopic method of pulmonary lobectomy are cosmesis, preservation of respiratory function, and reduced postoperative pain. In addition, there is reduced intraoperative bleeding and shortened operative time, while achieving mediastinal dissection similar to that of standard thoracotomy. The two-windows method of thoracoscopic pulmonary lobectomy is equal or superior to standard thoracotomy in every respect. This method should become the standard surgical technique for Stage I lung cancer.
Thoracoscopy provides a minimally invasive technique for the diagnosis and management of many posterior mediastinal masses. Benign neurogenic tumors, esophageal tumors, and bronchogenic cysts all can be approached using video-assisted thoracic surgical (VATS) techniques. Malignant lesions are still best approached via open thoracotomy. VATS techniques allow for less pain and dysfunction and can result in shortened hospital stays.
Seventeen consecutive patients were referred for management of empyema between April 1991 and March 1992. Fourteen patients defined as having an 'early' empyema were initially treated by videothoracoscopy. The other three patients, defined as having a 'late' empyema proceeded directly to thoracotomy. Videothoracoscopy was successful in 10 out of the 14 patients. The mean postoperative stay was 7.8 days. At a mean follow-up at 16.7 months, these patients were rendered apyrexial with full lung expansion and no residual pleural collection. The postoperative results were at least equivalent to other conventional forms of treatment without an undue level of complications. In this series, thoracoscopy was found to be successful when symptoms had been present up to 31 days before presentation at the first hospital, and the mean length of treatment before referral to Harefield was 47 days. It is now our policy to videothoracoscope all patients with empyema thoracis, regardless of the length of referral. It may circumvent the need for a thoracotomy, it does not add any increased risk of complications, and does not appreciably increase the length of hospital stay should thoracotomy ultimately be required.
The diagnosis and management of thoracic outlet syndromes is based on the surgical management of more than 3,000 patients, 800 of which have had recurrent thoracic outlet syndromes. Accurate diagnosis for peripheral nerve compression is based on measurement of the ulnar and median nerve conduction velocities across the thoracic outlet. For sympathetic maintained pain syndrome or causalgia, a stellate ganglion block is helpful. Arteriography and venography are critical to show vascular compression. Conservative management is successful in most cases (70%) initially. For arterial reconstruction, the supraclavicular-infraclavicular approach is recommended. For the Paget-Schroetter syndrome (effort thrombosis of the axillary subclavian vein), prompt thrombolysis followed by transaxillary first rib resection is mandatory. No long-term anticoagulants are necessary. For hyperhidrosis, causalgia, sympathetic maintained pain syndrome or reflex sympathetic dystrophy, transaxillary dorsal sympathectomy with first rib resection or thoracoscopy is the preferred management when conservative therapy fails. For recurrent thoracic outlet syndrome and sympathetic maintained pain syndrome, a high thoracoplasty posterior approach is preferable with neurolysis of the nerve roots and brachial plexus as well as a dorsal sympathectomy. The technique of transaxillary first rib resection with or without dorsal sympathectomy is presented. The use of the thoracoscope expedites the procedure and improves the teaching capability.
OBJECTIVE: To report our experience of thoracoscopic pulmonary operations from May 1991 to May 1994. DESIGN: Prospective open study. SETTING: District hospital, Germany. SUBJECTS: 93 patients who underwent 120 thoracoscopic procedures. INTERVENTIONS: Wedge resection (n = 56), pleural biopsy (n = 21), early decortication (n = 16), partial pleurectomy (n = 9), pleurodesis (n = 5), pulmonary biopsy (n = 4), segmentectomy (n = 3), evacuation of haemothorax (n = 3), biopsy of mediastinal tumor (n = 2), and costal biopsy (n = 1). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Morbidity, mortality, and avoidance of open thoracotomy. RESULTS: Indications for thoracoscopic intervention were: solitary pulmonary nodule (n = 37), recurrent pneumothorax (n = 17), pleural empyema (n = 14), diffuse pulmonary disease/multiple nodules (n = 10), recurrent pleural effusion (n = 11), haemothorax (n = 3), and mediastinal tumour (n = 1). In 29 of 37 patients in whom we attempted resection of a solitary pulmonary nodule we obtained enough tissue for diagnosis, and avoided thoracotomy in 18 patients. Complications included pulmonary embolus (n = 1), recurrent empyema (n = 1), haemorrhage (n = 2), infection of the drain site (n = 3), and two persistent air leaks. One was closed at a second thoracoscopy and the other required open thoracotomy after which he developed pulmonary failure and died. One patient with a haemothorax developed multiple system organ failure and died, and attempted resection of a mediastinal tumour was unsuccessful. Three thoracoscopic procedures had to be abandoned because of dense adhesions. CONCLUSIONS: Thoracoscopic surgery is a safe, well tolerated, and cost effective alternative to open thoracotomy in selected patients.