• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.93-96
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• 1979

One case is presented in which there was radiographic evidence that pleural space fluid disappeared at the 15th day after pneumonectomy. Clinical course was uneventful and the space was refilled at the postoperative fifth month. This complication was probably due to the presence of small a bronchopleural fistula, in spite of the difficulty experienced in its demonstration. Conservative management is recommended with frequent clinical and radiographic observations, so that early surgical intervention may be undertaken if an overt bronchopleural fistula results.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.27 no.12
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• pp.1047-1051
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• 1994

Airway obstruction may be caused by extreme mediastinal shift and rotation after right pneumonecotmy or after left pneumonecotomy in the presence of right aortic arch.We experienced such a complication after right pneumonectomy, so called right postpneumonectomy syndrome. The patient was 28 years old female, and 4 month ago she had undergone right pneumonecotomy via video assisted thoracoscopic surgery[VATS] for endobronchial tuberculus dissemination and secondary pulmonary infection. She was treated by mediastinal repositioning which were composed of substernal fixation of pericardium and insertion of expandable prosthesis of 1000 cc capacity. She had good postoperative course and now she feels no obstructive symptoms.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.27 no.5
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• pp.374-378
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• 1994

Bronchoplastic and angioplastic operation in lung surgery is appropriate treatment for a wide range of benign endobronchial lesions and low grade malignancies. Between March 1990 to February 1994, four patients underwent bronchial sleeve resection and one patient received left upper lobe lobectomy with pulmonary artery angioplasty. Types of disease includes two cases of endobronchial tuberculosis and three cases of lung cancer. The main operation performed are one pneumonectomy, two right upper lobectomy and one each of left upper lobectomy and left lower lobectomy. All cases received sleeve resection not due to decreased respiratory reserve but due to anatomic suitability. One patient who received pneumonectomy had postoperative complication of empyema thoracis.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.36 no.6
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• pp.444-447
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• 2003

Sleeve pneumonectomy can be a method of treatment in a selected patient with bronchogenic carcinoma involving carina. A 64 years old male with a history of mitral valve replacement via midsternotomy 13 years ago and resection of papilloma of the vocal cord 2 years ago. The patient was admitted due to blood-tinged sputum. Bronchoscopy and computerized tomogram of the chest revealed 3.5 cm mass at lower margin of the trachea and totally obstructing the left main bronchus. A biopsy revealed squamous cell carcinoma. He underwent left sleeve pneumonectomy through sequential bilateral thoracotomy without cardiopulmonary bypass, and the pathologic stage was T4N0M0 stage IIIB. The patient is being followed through the outpatient clinic in good general condition.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.31 no.6
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• pp.624-628
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• 1998

Postpneumonectomy syndrome is a rare and delayed complication of left pneumonectomy in most patients with normal mediastinal vascular anatomy. This syndrome is characterized by dyspnea and recurrent pulmonary infection in the remaining right lung that typically occur within the first postoperative year. The condition is believed to be secondary to postsurgical changes that include a marked shift of the mediastinum to the left, clockwise rotation of the heart and great vessels, and herniation of the right lung into the left anterior thorax. These changes lead to compression of the trachea or right main bronchus among the thoracic spine and the right pulmonary artery. We report a case of postpneumonectomy syndrome in 15 year-old girl that followed by left pneumonectomy for bronchiectasis 6 years ago. We have inserted an expandable prosthesis in the left thoracic cavity posterior to the heart. After implantation of an expandable prosthesis, an anatomic reposition of the shifted mediastinum was achieved, which resulted in instantaneous and sustained relief. The post-operative course was uneventful and the patient was followed in OPD from after discharge to now.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.33 no.10
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• pp.798-805
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• 2000

Background : the prediction on changes in the lung function after lung surgery would be an important indicator in terms of the operability and postoperative complications. In order to predict the postoperative FEV1 - the commonly used method for measuring changes in lung function- a comparison between the quantitative CT and the perfusion lung scan was made and proved its usefulness. Material and Method : The subjects included 22 patients who received perfusion lung scan and quantitative CT preoperatively and with whom the follow-up of PFT were possibles out of the pool of patients who underwent right lobectomy or right pneumonectomy between June of 1997 and December of 1999. The FEV1 and FVC were calibrated by performing the PFT on each patient and then the predicted FEV1 and FVC were calculated after performing perfusion lung scan and quantitative CT postoperatively. The FEV1 and FVC were calibrated by performing the PFT after 1 week and after 3 momths following the surgery. Results : There was a significant mutual scan and the actual postoperative FEV1 and FVC at 1 week and 3 months. The predicted FEV1 and FVC(pneumonectomy group : r=0.962 and r=0.938 lobectomy group ; r=0.921 and r=913) using quantitative CT at 1 week postoperatively showed a higher mutual relationship than that predicted by perfusion lung scan(pneumonectomy group : r=0.927 and r=0.890 lobectomy group : r=0.910 and r=0.905) The result was likewise at 3 months postoperatively(CT -pneumonectomy group : r=0.799 and r=0.882 lobectomy group : r=0.934 and r=0.932) Conclusion ; In comparison to perfusion lung scan quantitative CT is more accurate in predicting lung function postoperatively and is cost-effective as well. Therefore it can be concluded that the quantitative CT is an effective method of replacing the perfusion lung scan in predicting lung function post-operatively. However it is noted that further comparative analysis using more data and follow-up studies of the patients is required.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.26 no.11
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• pp.851-855
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• 1993

Among elevn consecutive cases having undergone Completion Pueumonectomy[CP]between 1958 and Aug. 1993 at the Dep. of Thoracic & Cardiovascular Surgery in National Medical Center. The patient`s mean age was 43 years[range 28 yrs, to 68yrs.],& they consisted with 10 males and 1 female. The indications for CP were benign diseases in 9 cases & 2 cases of lung cancer. The mean interval between the first operation & CP was 62.3 months[from 17 days to 288 months]. The several special intraoperative procedures such as intrapericardial pulmonary vesselsdivision & suture ligation, reinforcement of bronchial stumpmargin, & applied the Fibrin glue & hemostatics. The mean intra operative bleeding was 3582ml.[1500ml. to 6500ml.] The post orerative complication were developed in 5 cases[45.5%] they were empyema with BPF in 2 cases, empyema in 2 cases, & 1 case of repiratoy insufficiency which leading to death. We concluded that the C P noted high morbidity & mortality compared with ordinary first pulmonary resectional surgery. But, it will be a challenge to improved the morbidity because of increasing trend of completion pneumonectomy in a furture time.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.50 no.1
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• pp.50-53
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• 2017

A mixed infection of Mycobacterium abscessus subsp. abscessus (Mab) and Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) in the lung is an unusual clinical manifestation and has not yet been reported. A 61-year-old woman had been treated for Mab lung disease and concomitant pneumonia, and was diagnosed with pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB). Despite both anti-PTB and anti-Mab therapy, her entire left lung was destroyed and collapsed. She underwent left pneumonectomy and received medical therapy. We were able to successfully treat her mixed infection by pneumonectomy followed by inhaled amikacin therapy. To the best of our knowledge, thus far, this is the first description of a mixed Mab and MTB lung infection.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.26 no.10
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• pp.769-774
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• 1993

Thoracic empyema is defined as purulent pleural effusion or effusion with positive bacteriology. Recently, the empyema has markedly decreased by developement of antibiotics, but empyemas following thoracotomy were occasionaly reported. During the period of January, 1985 to May,1991, 18 patients with postthoracotomy empyema have been treated in the Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery of Chonbuk National University Hospital.There were 17 males and 1 female ranged from 18 years to 67 years of age. The underlying diseases of empyema were tuberculosis [50%], lung cancer [33.3%], esophageal cancer [11.1%],and aspergillosis with tuberculosis[5.6%]. In surgical procedures causing the empyema, there were lobectomy[38.9%], pneumonectomy[22.2%], decortication[16.7%], decortication & lobectomy[11.1%], and esophagectomy [11.1%]. Etiologic organisms in the pleural fluid were Pseudomonas [27.7%], S.aureus [16.7%], mixed infection [16.7%], K.pneumonia [5.6%], M.tuberculosis [5.6%], and no isolation [27.7%]. In 6 cases with BPF, completion pneumonectomy was performed in 1 case, and open thoracostomy in 5 cases. In 12 cases without BPF, closed thoracostomy was performed in 1 case, decortication in 2 cases, decortication & open thoracostomy in 2 cases, and open thoracostomy in 7 cases. In 6 cases with BPF, the fistulas were closed in 4 cases at follow up, the other 2 cases died from pulmonary insufficiency after completion pneumonectomy and open thoracostomy,respectively. In 12 cases without BPF, the empyema cavities were filled with expanded lungs and granulation tissues, except 1 case died from sepsis.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.109-115
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• 1988

With the decreasing incidence of new cases and the highly effective results with antituberculous drug therapy, there is a marked decline in the need for surgery which was formerly such an important part in the successful program of management of this disease. During the period of two years and a half from Jun. 1984 to Dec. 1986, this study represents an analysis of 163 cases of several surgical management for eventual control of pulmonary tuberculosis at National Kon-ju tuberculosis Hospital. 1. Mode of surgical treatment was: Resection; 123 cases [Pneumonectomy: 83, lobectomy: 35, lobectomy plus segmentectomy; 4 segmentectomy: 1], thoracoplasty: 20 and others: 20. 2. Age distribution ranged 16and 68 with average of 34 years. Male and female ratio was 1.2: 1. 3. Surgical indications were: totally destroyed lung; 64, Destroyed lobe of segment; 13, cavity positive sputum; 10, cavity c negative Sputum; 6, Bronchostenosis c atelectasis; 2, empyema c or s BPF; 46, Aspergilloma; 8, Questions of Associated tumor; 4 and other 5. 4. Incidence of Complications was 10.4% and the mortality was 5.5 percent. The cause of mortality were analyzed. The main causes of death were respiratory insufficiency; 4, fulminant hepatitis; 1, hemorrhage; 1 and unknown; 1 in pneumonectomy, and asphyxia; 1 in lobectomy and sepsis; 1 in other procedure. 5. Conversion rare of positive sputum to negative state related to resectional surgery was 91.5%. In pneumonectomy, drug resistant group preoperatively showed 88.1% conversion rate postoperatively and drug sensitive group showed that 100% conversion rate. In lobectomy, both drug resistant and sensitive groups showed that 100% conversion rate postoperatively.