title: Ultrasonic pleural debridement of empyema.
abstract: Thoracic decortication is a common procedure for empyema. However, effective dissection without injuring the lung parenchyma is sometimes difficult. We introduce a new technique using an ultrasonic surgical unit (USUTM) to search the dissection plane and simultaneously perform pleural debridement and irrigation with minimal injury of the lung parenchyma. USUTM was used on 5 patients with acute empyema with fibrino-purulent phase and good clinical course was achieved. This procedure facilitates effective pleural debridement under either thoracoscopy or conventional thoracotomy.
authors.affiliation: Second Department of Surgery, Tottori University, Faculty of Medicine, 36-1 Nishi-cho, Yonago, Tottori 683-8504, Japan.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Taniguchi
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Makihara
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ohgi
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003646:Debridement / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods*; D016724:Empyema, Pleural / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008168:Lung / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery; D008297:Male; D011859:Radiography; D013906:Thoracoscopy; D013908:Thoracotomy; D014463:Ultrasonography