A comparison of thoracic or lumbar patient-controlled epidural analgesia methods after thoracic surgery

BACKGROUND: We aimed to compare patient-controlled thoracic or lumbar epidural analgesia methods after thoracotomy operations. METHODS: One hundred and twenty patients were prospectively randomized to receive either thoracic epidural analgesia (TEA group) or lumbar epidural analgesia (LEA group). In both groups, epidural catheters were administered. Hemodynamic measurements, visual analog scale scores at rest (VAS-R) and after coughing (VAS-C), analgesic consumption, and side effects were compared at 0, 2, 4, 8, 16, and 24 hours postoperatively. RESULTS: The VAS-R and VAS-C values were lower in the TEA group in comparison to the LEA group at 2, 4, 8, and 16 hours after surgery (for VAS-R, P = 0.001, P = 0.01, P = 0.008, and P = 0.029, respectively; and for VAS-C, P = 0.035, P = 0.023, P = 0.002, and P = 0.037, respectively). Total 24-hour analgesic consumption was different between groups (175 +/- 20 mL versus 185 +/- 31 mL; P = 0.034). The comparison of postoperative complications revealed that the incidence of hypotension (21/57, 36.8% versus 8/63, 12.7%; P = 0.002), bradycardia (9/57, 15.8% versus 2/63, 3.2%; P = 0.017), atelectasis (1/57, 1.8% versus 7/63, 11.1%; P = 0.04), and the need for intensive care unit (ICU) treatment (0/57, 0% versus 5/63, 7.9%; P = 0.03) were lower in the TEA group in comparison to the LEA group. CONCLUSIONS: TEA has beneficial hemostatic effects in comparison to LEA after thoracotomies along with more satisfactory pain relief profile

Video assisted thoracic surgery outcomes for primary spontaneous pneumothorax, analysis of 56 cases, single university hospital experience

BACKGROUND/AIMS To evaluate patients with primary spontaneous pneumothorax (PSP) who were treated via the video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) procedure by means of clinical features, surgical outcomes, and follow-up results. MATERIAL and METHODS We retrospectively analyzed 56 consecutive patients who underwent VATS procedure for PSP between 2012 and 2018. There were 47 male and 9 female patients with a mean age of 26.01 +/- 7.4 (18-38) years. VATS was performed under general anesthesia with double lumen intubation. Apical wedge resection and mechanical abrasion or apical pleurectomy was performed in 60% of the patients with uniportal VATS and in 40% of the patients with two portal VATS by the same surgical team. RESULTS The operation indications were recurrence in 40 (71.5%) patients, prolonged air leak in 14 (25%), and bilateral pneumothorax in 2 (3.5%). Pleurodesis procedures included upper pleural mechanical abrasion in 44 (78.5%) patients and apical pleurectomy in 12 (22.5%). Bilateral VATS procedure was performed for two patients who had bilateral pneumothorax. The mean operation time, chest tube removal time, and length of hospital stay were 26.04 +/- 4.61 (20-45) min, 1.4 +/- 0.6 (1-3) days, and 1.7 +/- 0.8 (2-4) days, respectively. No significant difference was found between uniportal and biportal VATS or mechanical abrasion and apical pleurectomy groups compared with statistical evaluation with demographic and clinical features and surgical outcomes (p>0.05). There was no mortality, and complications occurred in 16 (28.5%) patients. Only 3 (5.3%) recurrence occurred during the mean follow-up period of 48.4 +/- 11.4 (9-70) months. CONCLUSION Video-assisted thoracic surgery stapled bullectomy for PSP when followed by mechanical pleurodesis is still the gold standard and is a reliable, safe method with a low recurrence rate, complication, length of hospital stay, and quicker recovery time. The formation of new bullae-blebs could be related to continued smoking behavior that can be seen as the main reason for late period recurrences

A rare mediastinal occurrence of neuroblastoma in an adult: case report

ABSTRACT CONTEXT: Neuroblastoma is the most common extracranial malignant solid tumor that occurs during childhood. It arises from primitive cells and is seen in the adrenal medulla and sympathetic ganglia of the sympathetic nervous system. CASE REPORT: We present a rare case of a 40-year-old man who was diagnosed with the onset of neuroblastoma arising in the mediastinum. He was treated by means of surgical resection in the superior mediastinum after neoadjuvant chemotherapy. The patient’s surgical outcome was satisfactory. CONCLUSION: There are still no standard treatment guidelines for adult neuroblastoma patients. Although they have a poor prognosis, the main treatment option should be complete surgery at an early stage. This situation may become clarified through biological and genetic studies in the future

Evaluation of the Possible Risk Factors on Bronchial Closure Techniques for Bronchopleural Fistula after Lung Resection

Background: Broncho-pleural fistula (BPF) can occur after pulmonary resections as a complication with high morbidity and mortality rates.  Aim: In the present study, we analyzed the relation between the possible risk factors and the two major bronchial closure techniques for BPF after lung resections, and the management methods of BPF.  Materials and methods: A total of 26 cases detected and managed with BPF diagnosis in our clinic between September 2005 and September 2017 were evaluated retrospectively. The cases were divided into two groups: Group 1 (n=14); bronchial closure performed manually and Group 2 (n=12) bronchial closure with stapler. We analyzed cases for age, gender, body mass index, pulmonary function tests, time to fistula, total protein/albumin level, length of hospital stay, bronchial stump distance, presence of bronchial stump coverage, and the mean survivals. Results: Twenty-three of the cases were males (88.5%) with a mean age of 60.03±8.7 years (range 38-73). While BPF was detected in twenty-three (88.5%) of the cases after pneumonectomy, three (11.5%) of them were after lobectomy. There was no statistically significant correlation between the two groups in gender, age, BMI, preoperative FEV1, time to fistula, total protein/albumin level, length of hospital stay, bronchial stump distance, and presence of bronchial stump coverage (chi-square test, p>0.05). As a result of the applied Kaplan-Meier analysis, we found no statistically significant difference in the mean survival rates between the two groups (p>0.05). Conclusions: Broncho-pleural fistulas still remains a major challenge. Although there is no statistical relationship between bronchial closure techniques and possible risk factors in our study, patients should be assessed in terms of possible risk factors. The management strategy for BPF varies according to individual patients’ clinical condition, the size of the fistula, and development time

Pulmonary Nodular Lymphoid Hyperplasia: A Rare Case Mimicking Malignancy

Pulmonary nodular lymphoid hyperplasia (PNLH) is a reactive lymphoid proliferation manifesting as multiple solitary nodules or localized infiltrates in the lungs. It is a type of benign lymphoproliferative disease that can affect the lungs. We present the case of a 41-year-old female patient with respiratory symptoms such as productive cough, left chest pain, and dyspnea. Imaging findings revealed two lesions with lobulated contour in the left upper lobe apicoposterior segment and left lower lobe superior segment. After examining the minimally invasive diagnostic methods, this rare PNLH case mimicking malignancy was both diagnosed and treated by surgery. Further studies including more patients and longer follow-ups are needed for this rare disease

Extra-Abdominal Aggressive Fibromatosis Presenting As an Intrathoracic Tumor

Tumors of fibrous tissue origin (fibromatosis) in chest and mediastinum have been rarely reported in the literature. Herein, we report a rare case of aggressive fibromatosis presenting as an intrathoracic tumor. A 36-year-old woman admitted to our hospital due to a feeling of oppression and pain in the left chest. A chest X-ray, thorax computed tomography revealed a large mass filling two thirds of lower left thorax. Widely surgical resection of the tumor was performed thoracotomy via seventh intercostal space. The tumor was 20x15x15 mm in size and diagnosed pathologically as aggressive fibromatosis. The patient has been well without recurrence for 15 months after surgery