OBJECTIVE To update the recommendations for the structural characteristics of general thoracic surgery (GTS) in Europe in order to provide a document that can be used as a guide for harmonizing the general thoracic surgical practice in Europe. METHODS A task force was created to set the structural, procedural and qualification characteristics of a European GTS unit. These criteria were endors...

BACKGROUND Robotic surgery is an alternative to minimally invasive surgery. The aim of this study was to report on current trends in robotic thoracic and cardiovascular surgical techniques in Korea. METHODS Data from the National Evidence-based Healthcare Collaborating Agency (NECA) between January 2006 and June 2012 were used in this study, including a total of 932 cases of robotic surgeries...

OBJECTIVES Assessing the degree of involvement and participation in thoracic surgical research as well as surgical quality improvement conducted across Canadian institutions is difficult as no common data collection system and no prior studies exist. As a pilot investigation, we designed and conducted a membership survey of the Canadian Association of Thoracic Surgeons (CATS) to evaluate the ex...

BACKGROUND Surgery for patients with left central bronchogenic carcinoma invading the carina is challenging due to the complexity of left sleeve pneumonectomy, carinal resection, and airway reconstruction and management. Here we describe a modified approach to overcome this problem. CASE PRESENTATION Between March 2011 and September 2012, two patients with left central bronchogenic carcinoma ...

introduction:surgical treatment of diseases in cervicothoracic, thoracic and thoracolumbar regions can be a challenging issue. cooperation of the thoracic surgeons and spine surgeons can improve the outcomes and decrease the complications of patients who underwent these approaches.materials & methods: the participants of this study consisted of seventeenpatients suffering from different types o...

CONTEXT AND OBJECTIVE Studies have shown that physiopathological changes to the respiratory system can occur following thoracic and abdominal surgery. Laminectomy is considered to be a peripheral surgical procedure, but it is possible that thoracic spinal surgery exerts a greater influence on lung function. The aim of this study was to evaluate the pulmonary volumes and maximum respiratory pres...

PURPOSE The use of staplers for thoracic surgery has been widely accepted and regarded as a safe procedure. However, sometimes adverse events (AEs) of stapling are experienced. The aim of the present study was to retrospectively analyze AEs of stapling in thoracic surgery. METHODS A retrospective multi-institutional review was conducted by the 27 institutions of the Central Japan Lung Cancer ...

what he would say about a patient who had a purulent pleural effusion, and received the smug and tautological reply that the patient had an empyema. Perhaps our present-day student-physician would be more sophisticated, but he still tends to be casual in his attitude toward this highly significant manifestation of disease. A monograph on the subject is, indeed, needed. A somewhat unusual organi...

Recurrent laryngeal nerve injury can develop following cervical or thoracic surgery; however, few reports have described intraoperative recurrent laryngeal nerve monitoring. Consensus regarding the use of this technique during thoracic surgery is lacking. We used intraoperative recurrent laryngeal nerve monitoring in a patient with contralateral vocal cord paralysis who was scheduled for comple...

Thoracic surgery in small animals is considered a painful procedure, resulting in alterations in pulmonary function and respiratory mechanics. Modifications in surgical approach and technique and selection of the appropriate analgesic protocol may improve outcomes in dogs and cats after thoracic surgery. Systemic administration of opioids and other agents, intercostal and intrapleural blocks, a...