Topic: Is minimal access surgery of esophageal atresia with tracheoesophageal fistula by thoracotomy better than conventional thoracotomy? A multi-institutional review of literature. Objective: Minimal access surgical technique has been one of the most important surgical advances in the last few decades; we have reached now in such era that complex neonate surgical issue can be addressed safely...

BACKGROUND The optimal treatment of empyema thoracis has been widely debated. Proponents of pleural drainage alone, drainage plus fibrinolytic therapy, video-assisted thoracoscopic surgical (VATS) debridement, and open thoracotomy each champion the efficacy of their approach. METHODS This study examines treatment of complex empyema thoracis between June 1, 1994, and April 30, 1997. Twenty-one...

OBJECTIVES Traditionally, chronic empyema has been treated by thoracotomy and decortication. Some recent reports have claimed similar clinical results for videothoracoscopy, but with less morbidity and mortality than open procedures. Our experience with thoracotomy and decortication is reviewed so that the results of this surgical procedure can be adequately evaluated. MATERIALS AND METHODS F...

STUDY OBJECTIVE To assess the relative benefit of thoracoscopy vs open thoracotomy in the removal of benign neurogenic, mediastinal tumors (BNMTs). DESIGN Retrospective comparative study of thoracoscopy and open thoracotomy. SETTING Patients underwent surgery at the thoracic surgical services of two institutions from 1988 to 1994. Patients who underwent thoracoscopy were operated on more re...

Though most cardiac operations are performed through median sternotomy because of its versatility and familiarity to surgeons, the fact is sternotomy is not without complications, and the problems of post sternotomy pain, dehiscence, mediastinitis, osteomyelitis and unstable sternum increases morbidity and mortality in these patients. Median sternotomy may also leave a bad scar which patients d...

Limited options to treat hypoxemia during one-lung venti• lation (OLV) compared to open thoracotomy. Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) interferes with surgical exposure during video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS). Priority on rapid and complete lung collapse. • Possibility of prolonged periods of OLV. Particularly dur• ing the learning phase of the surgical team. Decreased posto...

The purpose of this study is to examine the feasibility and safety of thoracoscopic major pulmonary resection requiring the cross-clamping of the main pulmonary artery (PA), in comparison to an open thoracotomy performed in patients with lung cancer. A retrospective database of 27 consecutive lung cancer patients, who underwent either video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) (n=13) or open thorac...

BACKGROUND Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) anatomic lung resections are gradually becoming the standard surgical approach in early-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The technique is being applied in cases of larger tumors depending on the experience of the surgical team. The objective of this study was to compare early surgical and survival outcomes in patients undergoing an...