HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: 31/4/837    most recent 09031936.00140806v1 Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Permissions Request Permissions Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Rena, O. Articles by Casadio, C. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Rena, O. Articles by Casadio, C.

Surgical pleurodesis for Vanderschueren's stage III primary spontaneous pneumothorax

¹ Thoracic Surgery Unit, "A. Avogadro" University, Novara, and ² Thoracic Surgery Unit, E. Morelli Regional Hospital, Sondalo, Italy.

CORRESPONDENCE: O. Rena, Thoracic Surgery Unit, University "A. Avogadro", Via Frasconi, 14, 28100 Novara, Italy. Fax: 39 3213733578. E-mail: ottaviorena{at}libero.it

Keywords: Pleurectomy, pleurodesis, pneumothorax, surgery, thoracoscopy

Received: October 30, 2006
Accepted November 22, 2007

The aim of the present study was to determine the impact of various pleurodesis procedures on post-operative morbidity and late recurrence rate after surgical treatment of Vanderschueren’s stage III primary spontaneous pneumothorax.

Between January 2001 and June 2004, 208 consecutive patients (169 male and 39 female; mean (range) age 25 (12–39) yrs) were submitted to 220 video-assisted thoracoscopic surgical procedures for primary spontaneous pneumothorax. All patients underwent apical lung resection; 112 were assigned at random to mechanical pleural abrasion (group A) and 108 to apical pleurectomy (group B).

The two groups of patients showed similar characteristics. No intra- or post-operative deaths occurred. Post-operative morbidity was 6.25% for group A and 12.9% for group B; the two groups exhibited a similar persistent post-operative air leak rate (5.3% in group A and 5.5% in group B), whereas haemothorax was significantly more frequent after apical pleurectomy (eight (7.4%) cases) than after pleural abrasion (one (0.9%) case). The mean duration of follow-up was 46 (24–66) months. Late recurrence occurred in five cases (4.6%) after apical pleurectomy, and in seven (6.2%) after mechanical pleural abrasion.

Mechanical pleural abrasion by video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery is safer than apical pleurectomy in the treatment of primary spontaneous pneumothorax. No differences in late recurrence rate were observed between the two procedures.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				J-M. Tschopp, J-M. Schnyder, M. Froudarakis, and P. Astoul VATS or simple talc poudrage under medical thoracoscopy for recurrent spontaneous pneumothorax Eur. Respir. J., February 1, 2009; 33(2): 442 - 443. [Full Text] [PDF]