introduction: transhiatal esophagectomy is a widely accepted approach for palliative resection of subcarinal esophageal cancers. this study was designed to evaluate the necessity of routine thoracostomy tube insertion in this technique.  methods: this descriptive study was conducted on 123 consecutive patients with esophageal cancers undergoing transhiatal esophagectomy from march 2001 to febru...

Background. Tube thoracostomy is widely used throughout the medical, surgical, and critical care specialities. It is generally used to drain pleural collections either as elective or emergency. Complications resulting from tube thoracostomy can occasionally be life threatening. Aim. To present an update on the complications and management of complications of tube thoracostomy. Methods. A review...

We report on a previously undocumented complication of a trocar-free thoracostomy tube--delayed perforation of a normal esophagus. The complication presented clinically with fever and copious enteric drainage four days after thoracostomy tube insertion. Diagnosis was established by a contrast study of the esophagus. Retrospectively, the postinsertion chest radiograph showed the offending thorac...

This randomised study was designed to compare clinical outcomes for simple aspiration versus tube thoracostomy, in the treatment of the first primary spontaneous pneumothorax (PSP) attack. A randomised trial, comparing simple aspiration with tube thoracostomy, in 137 patients with a first episode of PSP was carried out. Immediate success was obtained in 40 out of the 65 patients (62%) randomly ...

BACKGROUND The usual management of ventilator-associated pneumothorax (VPX) is tube thoracostomy. However, this recommendation is based on tradition rather than on solid evidence. Although it has been applied successfully to other types of pneumothoraces, observation has not been used in the management of VPX. OBJECTIVES In this study, we investigated whether observation is a valid treatment ...

Hemothorax is common in elderly patients following blunt chest trauma. Traditionally, tube thoracostomy is the first choice for managing this complication. The goal of this study was to determine the benefits of this approach in elderly patients with and without an initial tube thoracostomy. Seventy-eight patients aged >65 years with blunt chest trauma and stable vital signs were included. All ...

Introduction: Transhiatal esophagectomy is a widely accepted approach for palliative resection of subcarinal esophageal cancers. This study was designed to evaluate the necessity of routine thoracostomy tube insertion in this technique.  Methods: This descriptive study was conducted on 123 consecutive patients with esophageal cancers undergoing transhiatal esophagectomy from March 2001 to Fe...

Fig. 1. Axial CT-scan image showing intercostal catheter located in the right pulmonary artery. Fig. 2. CT-scan image six weeks post removal of the catheter showing the sealed tract. used is by no means innocuous. Bleeding complications have been seen in patients with dense adhesions in the pleural space and in the post-pneumonectomy state. In the latter situation pulmonary vascular injury has ...

BACKGROUND Thoracostomy tube (TT) placement constitutes primary treatment for traumatic hemopneumothorax. Practice patterns vary widely, and criteria for management and removal remain poorly defined. In this cohort study, we examined the impact of implementation of a practice guideline (PG) on improving management efficiency of thoracostomy tube. METHODS We developed a PG aimed at standardizi...