Minimally invasive thoracic surgery, video-assisted thoracic surgery and thoracoscopy.
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Video-assisted thoracic surgery has been performed in 20 patients at the Medical Center of Delaware. Operations included seven pulmonary wedge resections, one mediastinal procedure, and 12 pleural procedures. In all cases, a definitive diagnosis was made or the lesion was removed. One postoperative atypical pneumonia occurred. One patient whose wedge resection proved to be squamous cell carcinoma on frozen section underwent a formal thoracotomy and lobectomy. Estimated savings in the eight patients who formerly would have undergone a thoracotomy incision is estimated at $30,000 for room cost alone. We foresee a markedly expanded role for this technique in major pulmonary resections, esophageal procedures, and cardiac surgery in the near future.
Video-assisted thoracic surgery is emerging as a viable approach to a number of intrathoracic disorders. Technical difficulties related to improper instrument selection and suboptimal intercostal operative access can reduce the utility of, and the enthusiasm for, the video-assisted thoracic surgical approach. This report describes the intercostal access strategy and the instrument positioning that we now prescribe for many video-assisted thoracic surgical procedures. These approaches have become refined during the course of our experience with 467 patients undergoing video-assisted thoracic operations over the last 18 months.
Surgical thoracoscopy (or pleuroscopy) has historically been underused in the diagnosis and therapy of diseases of the chest. The rapid developments in laparoscopy in recent years caused thoracic surgeons to reconsider the use of endoscopic techniques in surgery of the chest. Advances in video camera technology and the use of digital processing technology so expanded the potential of thoracoscopy that an entirely new set of procedures, called video-assisted thoracic surgery, has emerged. This article reviews situations in which video-assisted procedures have proven useful, the techniques by which these procedures are performed, and the rationale behind using the video-assisted in lieu of the open approach. Video-assisted surgery often allows one to accomplish the same goal as the comparable open procedure but with less morbidity and a shorter hospital stay. With continued development of instrumentation, increasingly complex procedures continue to be accomplished. It is important for radiologists to be aware of these new developments in minimally invasive surgery, as the techniques have major implications for the practice of chest medicine and surgery as a whole. The evolution of the management of the solitary pulmonary nodule is but one example of the way video-assisted thoracic surgery has called into question the traditional approach to diseases of the chest.
We report on our first experiences with an access in video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) which to the best of our knowledge has not yet been reported. One of the main problems in VATS is the absence of palpation which evidently plays an important role in tumor surgery. In three cases we therefore performed dorsolateral 8 cm incisions just beneath the scapula and resected a corresponding length on 6th or 7th rib to be able to insert one hand into the thorax. No rib-spreader was used in either case, the idea being that a small costotomy would be less painful and traumatic than a standard posterolateral thoracotomy. Visualization of the operative field was obtained by inserting a camera through the 9th intercostal space, one or two additional small incisions were made for the other instruments.
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Forty patients with malignant pulmonary disease underwent evaluation, staging, and a biopsy or resection by means of video-assisted thoracic surgery. There were 20 men and 20 women whose ages ranged from 27 to 82 years. Eight patients had a wedge resection for metastatic carcinoma, three a lobectomy for primary carcinoma, six exploration of the thorax, five biopsy of the aortopulmonary window, and eighteen a sublobar resection for primary carcinoma of the lung. There was no mortality. Three patients had air leaks that lasted an average of 8 days. Video-assisted thoracic surgery seems to be useful for more precise staging of carcinoma of the lung, and, in some patients, resectional operations can be performed.
OBJECTIVE: Video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) is a new procedure that makes it possible to see the intrathoracic organs and to resect pulmonary nodules without thoracotomy. Preoperative localization of small nodules that may not be visible or palpable during VATS is desirable. Percutaneous placement of spring hookwires is widely used to localize pulmonary nodules before VATS; infrequently, the adjacent lung parenchyma is also stained with methylene blue. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of methylene blue staining of pulmonary nodules without placement of a hookwire. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Fifteen pulmonary nodules in 15 patients were localized preoperatively under CT guidance by using techniques identical to those for CT-guided fine-needle aspiration of pulmonary nodules. Approximately 0.3 ml of methylene blue dye was injected into the nodule with a 22-gauge Chiba needle to stain the nodule, the needle pathway, and the visceral pleura. In two patients, a hookwire also was placed. All patients had solitary nodules in which transbronchial or transthoracic biopsy had been unsuccessful. The mean nodule diameter was 16 mm (range, 8-33 mm), and the mean distance to the nearest pleural surface was 10 mm (range, 0-21 mm). The localization procedure required a mean of 32 min (range, 18-47 min). RESULTS: All 15 nodules were stained successfully either in the center or within the margins; the two hookwires were found to be displaced. In three cases, pulmonary hemorrhage occurred as a complication of the percutaneous staining procedure: in one case, subsequent conversion to thoracotomy was necessary owing to pulmonary hemorrhage and additional pleural bleeding during VATS, which resulted from puncture with a trocar directly into the pleural adhesions. Anticipated complications, such as pneumothorax, occurred in five patients; one patient had pleuritic pain, but none required treatment. In one patient, conversion to thoracotomy was done so that an adenocarcinoma could be treated by means of a lobectomy. In two others, thoracotomy was done because of problems with technical devices. CONCLUSIONS: Percutaneous staining of pulmonary nodules is an accurate technique for localizing nodules before VATS. The procedure is easily and safely performed, and it obviates wire-related complications, such as severe pleuritic pain.
The surgical approach to affections of the chest wall and pleura, still the predominant indications for thoracic surgery, has greatly changed since the advent of thoracoscopic procedures, and is emphasized in this second part of a two-part review, together with other indications for mediastinal tumours. Indicated after lung exeresis or emergency chest surgery, protective chest wall reconstruction with muscular flaps is no longer an exceptional operation. Inversely, thoracic surgery for infectious complications have become less frequent, unusually limited to well established procedures for tuberculosis surgery, treatment of bronchial fistula or mediastinal supperations. The chest cavity is well adapted to new techniques of thoracoscopy and video-assisted thoracic surgery both for diagnosis and treatment. Indications for pleuroscopy have taken on a completely new aspect since 1989. These techniques are used for pericardial fenestration, thoracic sympathectomy for dyshidrosis, vagotomy, splanchnicectomy, chylothorax, spinal affections, empyema and trauma surgery. These new techniques have also had an impact on treatment of spontaneous pneumothorax. For tumour surgery, thoracoscopy has made possible a more adapted strategy currently based on an initial needle biopsy, with limited thoracoscopic exeresis and ultimate treatment depending upon the pathology report. Immediate thoracoscopy without prior biopsy appears excessive. Video-assisted thoracosurgery is also used for most malignant mediastinal tumour which, due to advances in chemotherapy surgery have transformed the prognosis of a large number of mediastinal tumours.
Video-assisted thoracic surgery is a new modality that allows visualization of and access to the intrathoracic organs without making a thoracotomy incision. One hundred consecutive patients underwent 113 thoracic procedures using this technique. Eight wedge resections for metastatic lesions, 6 pericardial windows, 1 bronchogenic cystectomy, 4 explorations of the aortopulmonary window, 1 decortication, 5 pleural scleroses, 8 bullous ablations, 25 lung biopsies, 19 wedge resections for carcinoma, 9 explorations of the thorax, 3 lobectomies, 1 esophageal cystectomy, 14 wedge resections for benign lesions, 4 pleurectomies, 1 excision of a neurogenic tumor, 3 mediastinal explorations, and 1 imaged axillary dissection were performed. There was no mortality. Ten patients had complications from which they recovered completely. Patients undergoing video-assisted thoracic operations seem to have reduced postoperative pain, shorter hospitalization, and quicker recovery times. Currently, this new modality appears to have beneficial value for patients; however, only further experience will determine its true merits.
The advent in video-assisted thoracic surgery has rendered us to rely more and more on mechanical devices. We prospectively studied staple formation on resected lung specimen by radiography and attempted to correlate this with the clinical outcome. From February 1994 to January 1995, 36 consecutive pulmonary wedges (23 apical bullae, 12 pulmonary metastases, 1 tuberculoma) from 31 patients who had undergone resection by endoscopic staple-cutter (Endo GIA30, USSC) were examined by two-plane radiography for staple alignment and closure. Imperfect staple formation was found in 21 (58%) of resected specimens. The median size of the resected bullae is 4.2 mL (range, 2.0 to 58.8 mL) compared with 36 mL (range, 1.2 to 222.8 mL) in the resected metastases and tuberculoma specimen. Despite detecting more imperfect staples in the metastases group (77% vs 57%), there was little difference in the two groups with respect to postoperative chest drainage duration (median, 3 vs 2 days) or hospital stay (median, 2 vs 2 days). We conclude that the currently available endoscopic staplers are by no means perfect, especially for resection of larger specimens, even though this may not be apparent clinically. A continuous search for improvement in endoscopic staplers designed specifically for lung resection is needed.
Survival after surgical palliation of patients with malignant pleural effusions is expected to be of several months. From a group of 75 patients operated by video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) from September 1991 through March 1993, twenty-two of 38 patients with malignant disease underwent palliative surgery and operative morbidity and length of survival were studied. Palliation consisted in 20 talc pleurodesis and 2 pericardial windows for malignant effusions. In the 16 other patients with malignancy, video-thoracoscopy was done for diagnostic purposes. Thirty-day operative mortality was 13.6% (3/22) and the rate of operative morbidity was 31.8% (7/22). The follow-up was complete for all patients with a mean length of 5 months (+/- sd 4 months). During the follow-up period, 14 of 19 (74%) patients, alive 30 days after the procedure, were deceased at a mean of 3.4 +/- 4 months (6 patients < 3 months) after the operation. In all, 9 of 22 patients (40%) survived less than 3 months (median survival 4 months). Operative morbidity and mortality of video-thoracoscopy are high in the palliative group and only 60% of patients survived more than 3 months. More stringent criteria for selection of patients for palliative endosurgery should be defined.
BACKGROUND: The anesthetic characteristics of ultrasound-guided two-point rhomboid intercostal block (RIB) have not been fully established. This study compared the analgesic efficacy of ultrasound-guided two-point RIB with that of two-point thoracic paravertebral block (TPVB) for postoperative pain control and recovery in patients undergoing three-port thoracoscopic surgery. METHODS: Seventy patients aged 18-80 years scheduled for three-port thoracoscopic pulmonary resection were block-randomized in a 1:1 ratio to receive either TPVB or RIB. Both techniques were performed using 10 mL of 0.5% ropivacaine at each injection site. The primary outcome was the numerical rating scale (NRS) pain score at rest 24 h after surgery, with a predefined non-inferiority margin of Δ = 1. Secondary outcomes included NRS at rest and during coughing at 0.5, 2, 4, 12, 18, 24, and 48 h postoperatively, as well as the 24h postoperative Quality of Recovery-40 (QoR-40) score. RESULTS: The final analysis included 34 patients in the TPVB group and 34 in the RIB group. The mean difference in resting NRS scores at 24 h between the two groups was 0.088 (95% CI, -0.377 to 0.553), confirming the non-inferiority of RIB. However, the need for rescue analgesia was numerically greater in the RIB group than in the TPVB group (p = 0.045). The 24-h postoperative QoR-40 scores and cumulative sufentanil consumption within 48 h after surgery were comparable between the groups (both p > 0.05). CONCLUSION: Ultrasound-guided two-point RIB provided postoperative analgesia that was non-inferior to TPVB in patients undergoing three-port thoracoscopic surgery.
We describe herein the successful utilization of a video-assisted thoracic surgical approach to repair Morgagni's hernia. The patient was a 62-year-old woman in whom a routine chest X-ray had revealed an asymptomatic mass, which was presumed to be a pericardial lipoma or Morgagni's hernia. The video-assisted thoracic surgical approach was combined with a right submammary minithoracotomy to successfully repair the hernia without performing a laparotomy. The patient's postoperative course was uneventful and she was discharged 14 days after surgery. Thus, we believe that video-assisted thoracic surgery may be a useful and effective method for repairing Morgagni's hernia.
BACKGROUND: While dexamethasone is proven to enhance single-shot erector spinae plane block (ESPB), its role as an adjuvant in continuous ESPB catheters is unclear. This randomised controlled trial evaluated whether adding dexamethasone to ropivacaine improves analgesia after video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS). METHODS: 85 patients undergoing VATS with continuous ESPB were randomised to receive postoperative infusion of either 0.2% ropivacaine(C-ESPB group) or ropivacaine with 10 mg dexamethasone(D + C-ESPB group). The primary outcome was resting pain visual analog scale (VAS)at 12 h postoperatively, while secondary outcomes included QoR-15 scores, tramadol consumption, time to first analgesic requirement, postoperative adverse events, 3-month incidence of chronic pain, catheter-related complications, pain intensity at other times, and hospital stay. RESULTS: The D + C-ESPB group had significantly lower resting pain at 12 h [2.56 (1.03) vs 3.24 (1.21), mean difference -0.680, p = 0.006]; and lower coughing pain at 12 h [4.60 (1.48) vs 5.69 (1.35), mean difference 1.086, p < 0.001], with analgesic superiority sustained through 72 h. Quality of Recovery-15 scores were higher at 12 h [124.70 (12.48) vs 117.26 (12.24); mean difference -7.436, p = 0.007] and 48 h [141.60 (5.51) vs 138.98 (6.64); mean difference -2.628, p = 0.050]; Total tramadol consumption over 72 h was markedly reduce [0 (0,100) vs 100 (75,100), z = -3.807, p < 0.001], and hospital stay was shorter [Mean (SD) 6.09 (1.34) d vs 6.93 (1.55)d, p < 0.001]. The intervention did not, however, alter the 3-month incidence of chronic postsurgical pain (31% vs 34%, p = 0.756). CONCLUSION: Dexamethasone significantly enhances the analgesic efficacy of continuous ESPB, improving early pain control, recovery quality, and opioid-sparing after VATS, but does not reduce the incidence of chronic persistent surgical pain.
STUDY DESIGN: A prospective multicenter study on 100 consecutive surgical procedures. OBJECTIVES: A prospective multicenter study was performed to evaluate the early perioperative complications in 100 endoscopic spinal procedures--78 video-assisted thoracic surgical procedures and 22 laparoscopic lumbar instrumentation and fusion procedures. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: Endoscopic procedures have been widely applied in general surgery for appendectomy, cholecystectomy, liver resection, Nissen fundoplication, colon resection, and hernia repairs. Video-assisted thoracic surgery is widely used for pleural biopsy, lung resection, and sympathectomy. This is the first large series to date investigating the safety and potential complications using endoscopic surgery for anterior decompression or fusion of the thoracolumbar spine. METHODS: Video-assisted thoracic surgical procedures included multilevel anterior thoracic releases for deformity, 27 patients; anterior thoracic discectomies with spinal canal decompression, 41 patients; pyogenic vertebral osteomyelitis decompression, 2 patients; and vertebral corpectomy for neurologic decompression, 8 patients. Mean operative time was 2 hours, 34 minutes (range, 45 minutes to 6 hours), and mean length of stay was 4.97 days (range, 2-21 days). Anterior laparoscopic interbody stabilization and fusion at L4-5 or L5-S1 was performed in 22 patients. The mean operative time was 4 hours, 17 minutes (range, 2 hours, 40 minutes to 9 hours), and the mean length of stay was 5.6 days (range, 1-23 days). RESULTS: The most common video-assisted thoracic surgical complications were transient intercostal neuralgia (six patients) and atelectasis (five patients). The most common laparoscopic complication was bone graft donor site infection (two patients). There were two endoscopic cases that were converted to open procedures, one for extensive pleural adhesions and one for a common iliac vein laceration. CONCLUSIONS: The endoscopic spinal approaches proved to be safe operative procedures in 100 consecutive cases. There were no permanent iatrogenic neurologic injuries and no deep spinal infections.
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the analgesic efficacy of thoracic paravertebral block (TPVB) with different doses of liposomal bupivacaine (LB) or ropivacaine in patients undergoing single-port thoracoscopic lung surgery. METHODS: A total of 105 patients scheduled for video-assisted single-port thoracoscopic lung surgery were randomized in a 1:1:1 ratio into three groups: low-dose LB group (group LL), high-dose LB group (group HL), or ropivacaine group (group R). All received ultrasound-guided TPVB at the T5/6 level preoperatively. The primary outcome was the area under the curve (AUC) of NRS of pain at activity (AUC-aNRS) from 1 to 72 h postoperatively. Secondary outcomes included the AUC of NRS of pain at rest (AUC-rNRS) from 1 to 72 h postoperatively, NRS of pain at rest and at activity at 1, 6, 24, 48, and 72 h postoperatively, and the cumulative opioid consumption at 24, 48, and 72 h postoperatively. Additionally, postoperative recovery and adverse events were assessed. RESULTS: AUC-aNRS differed significantly among groups (p = 0.0092), with high-dose LB lower than low-dose LB (p = 0.0071), but not versus ropivacaine. No significant difference was found in AUC-rNRS (p > 0.05). The group-by-time interactions for NRS of pain at rest and at activity were not significant (p > 0.05). Cumulative opioid consumption at 24, 48, and 72 h was lower in group HL versus group LL (all p < 0.017), but not versus ropivacaine. Postoperative recovery and adverse events showed no differences (p > 0.05). CONCLUSION: LB combined with TPVB is not superior to ropivacaine for postoperative analgesia in single-port thoracoscopic lung resection.