title: Videothoracoscopy and video-assisted small thoracotomy for the treatment of pulmonary malignancies.
abstract: Video-assisted thoracic surgical procedures continue to be performed with increased frequency; the role of this new technique in the treatment of pulmonary malignancies or metastatic mediastinal adenopathies is not yet defined. Out of a series of 100 consecutive video-assisted thoracic operations, 22 patients resulted affected by a malignancy in the lung or in the subcarinal lymphnodes: six patients had a primary lung cancer and were operated with a video-assisted small thoracotomy of 5 cm (three lobectomy and three segmentectomy) because of a very poor respiratory reserve. Nine patients received a video-assisted wedge resection of a nodule resulted at the frozen section a metastasis of a carcinoma: a small thoracotomy of 8 cm was made and a hand entered the thoracic cage to obtain a careful palpation of the entire lung; five patients had enlarged lymphnodes only in posterior and inferior mediastinum, inaccessible by cervical mediastinoscopy or anterior mediastinotomy: thoracoscopic exploration obtained a useful mediastinal nodal sampling for these adenopathies. In selected cases video-assisted thoracic surgery can be used for resection or assessment of thoracic malignancies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Thoracic Surgery, University of Turin, Italy.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Casadio
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Giobbe
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Cianci
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Molinatti
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Oliaro
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Maggi
mesh_terms: D001706:Biopsy; D006801:Humans; D008168:Lung / Q000473:pathology; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000556:secondary / Q000601:surgery*; D008197:Lymph Node Excision; D008198:Lymph Nodes / Q000473:pathology; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D008479:Mediastinal Neoplasms / Q000556:secondary / Q000601:surgery; D011013:Pneumonectomy; D013906:Thoracoscopy / Q000379:methods; D013908:Thoracotomy / Q000379:methods; D014741:Video Recording