OBJECTIVES Chest tube insertion seems to be one important factor leading to intercostal nerve impairment. The purpose of this prospective study was to objectively evaluate intercostal nerve damage using current perception threshold testing in association with chest tube insertion. METHODS Sixteen patients were enrolled in this study. Intercostal nerve function was assessed with a series of 20...

contralateral pneumothorax crossing the midline in a patient with autopneumonectomy can mimic bilateral pneumothoraces on chest radiography. in this study, we report a rare case of right pneumothorax mimicking bilateral pneumothoraces in a patient with left autopneumonectomy. a 37-year-old man complained of progressive chest pain and dyspnea. the initial chest radiography revealed visible visce...

OBJECTIVES The management of chest tubes is one of the most critical aspects in patient care in thoracic surgery, and no consensus exists regarding the ideal chest tube management strategy. METHODS Chest tube management protocols and their effects on chest tube therapy were compared at four German specialist thoracic surgery units. Altogether, 79 patients were stratified for underlying diseas...

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to assess the immediate influence of chest tube removal on chest pain and forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1) after pulmonary resection. METHODS Prospective longitudinal investigation on 104 consecutive patients (53 wedge/segmentectomies and 51 lobectomies; 69 muscle and nerve-sparing lateral thoracotomy and 35 video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS)...

BACKGROUND The optimal chest tube size for the drainage of traumatic hemothoraces and pneumothoraces is unknown. The purpose of this study was to compare the efficacy of small versus large chest tubes for use in thoracic trauma. Our hypothesis was that (1) there would be no difference in clinically relevant outcomes including retained hemothoraces, the need for additional tube insertion, and in...

CMAJ © 2010 Canadian Medical Association or its licensors 1 A54-year-old man with a history of cirrhosis following liver transplantation presented with shortness of breath and was found to have a right-sided pleural effusion secondary to pulmonary infection. A pigtail drainage tube was inserted guided by computed tomography. The procedure was complicated by the development of a massive hemopneu...

OBJECTIVE Draining of the chest cavity with two chest tubes after pulmonary lobectomy is a common practice. This study aimed to investigate whether using two tubes after a pulmonary lobectomy is more effective than using a single tube. METHOD This prospective randomised study included 100 consecutive patients who underwent lobectomy or bilobectomy for any pathological condition between May 20...

BACKGROUND Small pigtail catheters appear to work as well as the traditional large-bore chest tubes in patients with traumatic pneumothorax, but it is not known whether the smaller pigtail catheters are associated with less tube-site pain. This study was conducted to compare tube-site pain following pigtail catheter or chest tube insertion in patients with uncomplicated traumatic pneumothorax. ...

STUDY OBJECTIVES Previous articles have promoted the early use of thoracotomy and decortication for refractory empyema. This study examines thoracoscopy and decortication at the time of initial chest tube placement in pediatric patients with parapneumonic empyema. DESIGN We reviewed the medical records of 16 consecutive patients who were children with parapneumonic empyema. RESULTS Thirteen...