title: The usefulness of Wi-Fi based digital chest drainage system in the post-operative care of pneumothorax.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Chest drainage systems are usually composed of chest tube and underwater-seal bottle. But this conventional system may restrict patients doing exercise and give clinicians obscure data about when to remove tubes because there is no objective indicator. Recently developed digital chest drainage systems may facilitate interpretation of the grade of air leak and make it easy for clinicians to decide when to remove chest tubes. In addition, with combination of wireless internet devices, monitoring and managing of drainage system distant from the patient is possible.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixty patients of primary pneumothorax were included in a prospective randomized study and divided into two groups. Group I (study) consisted of digital chest drainage system while in group II (control), conventional underwater-seal chest bottle system was used. Data was collected from January, 2012 to September, 2013 in Eulji University Hospital, Daejeon, Korea.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was no difference in age, sex, smoking history and postoperative pain between two groups. But the average length of drainage was 2.2 days in group I and 3.1 days in group II (P<0.006). And more, about 90% of the patients in group I was satisfied with using new device for convenience.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Digital system was beneficial on reducing the length of tube drainage by real time monitoring. It also had advantage in portability, loudness and gave more satisfaction than conventional system. Moreover, internet based digital drainage system will be a good method in thoracic telemedicine area in the near future.
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Cardiothoracic and Trauma Surgery, Pusan National University Hospital, Pusan, Korea ; 2 Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Eulji Hospital, Seoul, Korea ; 3 Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Wonju Severance Christian Hospital, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine, Wonju, Korea.
authors.forename: Hyun Min
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Cho
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Cardiothoracic and Trauma Surgery, Pusan National University Hospital, Pusan, Korea ; 2 Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Eulji Hospital, Seoul, Korea ; 3 Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Wonju Severance Christian Hospital, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine, Wonju, Korea.
authors.forename: Yoon Joo
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Hong
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Cardiothoracic and Trauma Surgery, Pusan National University Hospital, Pusan, Korea ; 2 Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Eulji Hospital, Seoul, Korea ; 3 Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Wonju Severance Christian Hospital, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine, Wonju, Korea.
authors.forename: Chun Sung
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Byun
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Cardiothoracic and Trauma Surgery, Pusan National University Hospital, Pusan, Korea ; 2 Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Eulji Hospital, Seoul, Korea ; 3 Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Wonju Severance Christian Hospital, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine, Wonju, Korea.
authors.forename: Jung Joo
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Hwang
keywords: Drainage; chest tubes; pneumothorax; telemedicine