Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery for spontaneous hemopneumothorax

Nan Yung Hsu*, Ming Jang Hsieh, Hui Ping Liu, Chiung Lun Kao, Jen Ping Chang, Pyng Jing Lin, Chau Hsiung Chang

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal Article peer-review

24 Scopus citations

Abstract

We operated on 403 patients with spontaneous pneumothorax between 1992 and 1996. Among these cases, 11 (2.7%) were spontaneous hemopneumothorax. The patients were all men, with ages ranging from 19 to 28 years (mean 23.8 years). The amount of blood drainage ranged from 650 to 2300 ml. Video- assisted thoracoscopic surgery was performed on these patients within 1 day after admission. The sources of bleeding were in the parietal and visceral pleurae of ruptured bullae (n = 6), the parietal pleura (n = 4), or the visceral pleura (n = 1). During operation, the ruptured bullae can be managed by an endoscopic linear stapler for a bullectomy, and the bleeding parietal pleura of the torn adhesion can be coagulated directly. Postoperative recovery of the 11 patients was uneventful, and they were discharged 4 to 10 days after the operation. No recurrence of spontaneous hemopneumothorax or any other complications occurred during follow-up. Thus spontaneous hemopneumothorax can be readily managed by cauterizing a bleeding site where appropriate, excising the apicocystic disease, and pleurodesis. As a minimally invasive method, video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery may be considered an initial treatment procedure in patients with spontaneous hemopneumothorax.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)23-27
Number of pages5
JournalWorld Journal of Surgery
Volume22
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - 01 1998
Externally publishedYes

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