title: A pilot study of the incidence of post-thoracotomy pulmonary complications and the effectiveness of pre-thoracotomy physiotherapy patient education.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To estimate the incidence and examine the pattern of post-thoracotomy pulmonary complications (PPC) that are amenable to physiotherapy treatment and to estimate the effect size of a pre-thoracotomy physiotherapy education session compared to no preoperative physiotherapy for reducing PPC.
  
  
  METHODS
  Forty-two patients undergoing thoracotomy participated in this two-group retrospective-prospective cohort study. The preop group (n=22) received physiotherapy education prior to surgery and the no preop group (n=20) did not receive preoperative physiotherapy education. Chest radiographs were examined for PPC for 5 days postoperatively. Incidences of PPC were determined. The effect size was based on a grand count of PPC.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The 5-day incidence of atelectasis, collapse, consolidation, and other complications was 85.0%, 39.0%, 31.7%, and 38.1%, respectively. Patterns of PPC showed large increases at days 2 and 3. The effect size for pre-thoracotomy physiotherapy education was zero.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In our sample, incidence of PPC was high and did not substantially differ based on whether or not preoperative education was provided.
authors.affiliation: Intensive Care Unit, Hamilton General Hospital, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. reidju@hhsc.ca
authors.forename: Julie C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Reid
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jamieson
authors.forename: Jennifer
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bond
authors.forename: Bashir M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Versi
authors.forename: Arpit
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Nagar
authors.forename: Bernard H K
authors.initials: BH
authors.lastname: Ng
authors.forename: Julie D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Moreland