Video-assisted thoracoscopic sterilization for exacerbation of chronic empyema thoracis.

STUDY OBJECTIVE To investigate the efficacy of video-assisted thoracoscopic sterilization to treat patients with exacerbation of chronic empyema thoracis. DESIGN Case reports and literature review. SETTING Academic department of surgery. PATIENTS Two elderly, debilitated patients with worsening, chronic empyema thoracis as diagnosed by radiographs, CT, and thoracentesis. Both patients had a history of therapeutic pneumothorax for tuberculosis without bronchopleural fistulas. INTERVENTIONS Video-assisted thoracoscopic sterilization of the thoracic cavity. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS There was no recurrence of empyema during a 6-year follow-up period for one patient and a 2.5-year follow-up period for the other patient. CONCLUSIONS Video-assisted thoracoscopic sterilization is a minimally invasive useful treatment for elderly or debilitated patients with exacerbation of chronic empyema thoracis.