• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.33 no.9
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• pp.723-728
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• 2000

Background: Minimally invasive techniques for open heart surgery are widely accepted in these days. There are minimally invasive approaches by the right or left parasternal incision and another approaches by mini-sternotomy of upper or lower half or sternum. We report the safety and efficacy of minimally invasive technique with right parasternal incision compared with the routine full sternotomy. Material and Method: From April 1997 through February 1999, 20 patients(Group A) underwent minimally invasive cardiac operations. We chose 41 patients(Group B) whose preoperative diagnosis were the same and general conditions were similar and who underwent routine full sternotomy before April 1997. We compared A group and B group in many aspects. We performed routine full median sternotomy in B group but we did a minimally invasive technique through a small right parasternal incision in A group. Result: mean age was 36.1 years in both groups. In disease entities, there were 11 cases of ASD, 9 cases of mitral valve disease in group A, and 16 cases of ASD, 25 cases of mitral valve diseases in group B. In ASD, operation time, cardiopulmonary bypass time of aortic occulusion time were 263 min, 82 min, and 41 min in group A and 180 min, 53 min, and 32 min in group B. In mitral valve disease, operation time, cardiopulmonary bypass time and aortic occlusion time were 267min, 106 min, and 70min in A group and were 207 min, 82 min, and 69 min in group B. There were significant differences in operation time, CPB time, and ACC time between group A and group B. There was a significant difference in the amount of bleeding in postoperative day 1 between group A and group B of mitral diasease. However, there was no significant difference in the amount of bleeding in other comparisons. Mean length of incision was 8.7 cm in group A. There was no significant difference in postoperative complications between A group and B group. There was no mortality in either group. Conclusion: We conclude that this minimally invasive technique with right parasternal incision is cosmetically excellent but it is not effective in reducing operative time and there was no significant difference in recovery time and postoperative complications compared with routine full sternotomy.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.45 no.2
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• pp.80-84
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• 2012

Background: The aim of this study is to evaluate our institutional results of the aortic valve replacement through minimally invasive approaches compared with conventional sternotomy. Materials and Methods: From August 1997 to July 2010, 838 patients underwent primary isolated aortic valve replacement. Of them, 73 patients underwent surgery through minimally invasive approaches (MIAS group) whereas 765 patients underwent surgery through the conventional sternotomy (CONV group). Clinical outcomes were compared using a propensity score matching design. Results: Propensity score matching yielded 73 pairs of patients in which there were no significant differences in baseline profiles between the two groups. Patients in the MIAS group had longer aortic cross clamp than those in the CONV group ($74.9{\pm}27.9$ vs.. $66.2{\pm}27.3$, p=0.058). In the MIAS group, conversion to full sternotomy was needed in 2 patients (2.7%). There were no significant differences in the rates of low cardiac output syndrome (4 vs. 8, p=0.37), reoperation due to bleeding (7 vs. 6, p=0.77), wound infection (2 vs. 4, p=0.68), or requirements for dialysis (2 vs. 1, p=0.55) between the two groups. Postoperative pain was significantly less in the MIAS group than the conventional group (pain score, $3.79{\pm}1.67$ vs. $4.32{\pm}1.56$; p=0.04). Conclusion: Both minimally invasive approaches and conventional sternotomy had comparable early clinical outcomes in patients undergoing primary isolated aortic valve replacement. Minimally invasive approaches significantly decrease postoperative pain.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.215-217
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• 1981

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.27 no.9
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• pp.793-797
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• 1994

Constrictive pericarditis is often accompanied with ~brothorax and deterioration of cardiac, hemodynamic functions. Surgical relief of fibrous peel causes remarkable improvement in pulmonary, cardiac, hemodynamic function, and subjective symptoms. We experienced 4 cases of constrictive pericarditis combined with bilateral ~brothorax after bilateral pleural effusion caused by tuberculosis and non-specific inflammation. Pleural decortication and pericardiectomy were done at the same time through anterolateral thoracotomy with sternal transection[3 patients] and median sternotomy incision[l patient]. Low cardiac output was the most common complication. With left anterolateral thoracotomy, we could prevent the hypotension from massive retraction for dissecting by median sternotomy, which was good for dissecting from anterior wall of left ventricle to posterior wall of left ventricle and surrounding phrenic nerve. It was enough to dissect the portion being through hard to dissect, right atrium, SVC and IVC.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.30 no.10
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• pp.1015-1018
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• 1997

Median sternotomy incision is world-widely used for open heart surgery, especially in valvular heart disease. But recently, minimally invasive approach by the right parasternal incision for valvular heart disease was introduced with the many merits by small incision. We experienced 1 case of mitral valve repalcement by right parasternal incision and extended transseptal approach. This technique has no specific compli ations or problems compared with the median sternotomy and was proven by the excellent exposure. Cosmetically, the patient was satisfied with the incision.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• v.49 no.1
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• pp.61-64
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• 2011

Upper thoracic vertebral bodies are difficult to access using standard anterior approaches. It may require sternotomy and claviculectomy, which carries significant possibility of morbidities. We report a case of inferiorly migrated cervicothoracic junction disc treated successfully by anterior upper-vertebral transcorporeal approach. This specific technique obviated the need of sternotomy, created favorable working space and saved the motion segment at cervicothoracic junction. This report is the first transcorporeal approach to a disc fragment at T1-2 space without fusion.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.98-100
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• 2003

Recently, Minimally invasive direct coronary artery bypass surgery (MIDCAB) is becoming one of the rapidly developing strategies in cardiac surgery. We report a case of MIDCAB used in upper sternotomy because of severe pleural adhesion.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.28 no.12
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• pp.1155-1159
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• 1995

Differentiated thyroid carcinoma is a slow growing tumor with relative good prognosis. But locally advanced thyroid cancer with T4 or N1b is difficult to manage. Between June 1988 and April 1995, we resected 8 advanced thyroid cancers trans-sternally. All patients had direct mediastinal extension [T4 or mediastinal lymph node metastasis [N1b with airway obstruction or dysphagia. We operated all the patients by partial or total sternotomy for mediastinal dissection along with thyroidectomy and radical neck dissection. There were some acceptable morbidities but no operative mortality. Postoperative radioactive iodine therapy was followed without side effects. Follow-up survival period was between 11 months to 81 months with 2 late mortalities [17 month, 30 month . Although definite benefit for routine mediastinal dissection in thyroid cancer has not been established, in locally advanced cases impending airway obstruction or dysphagia who have questionable effect by radioactive iodine therapy alone, aggressive mediastinal mass dissection including lymph node metastasis has the significant role to prevent the patients from suffocation & dysphagia, and to enhance the effect of followed radioactive iodine tharapy.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.26 no.12
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• pp.969-971
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• 1993

The sternal turnover has a limited use in an asymmetrical funnel chest. However we tried `One-half sternal turnover` as a new operative approach for an asymmetrical funnel chest. Through the bilateral submammary skin incision, median sternotomy was made from xiphoid process to midsternum and extended horizontally. The segment of ribs were cut at the angle of depression. The en-bloc resected chest wall segment contained one-half sternum as well as a part of ribs and left half of rectus muscle. After turning over the en-bloc segment, reapproximation with wiring was done. Sternotomy wound was closed in layer after placing of substernal drainage tube. Postoperatively, the chest wall was stable and the recovery course was uneventful except left-sided minimal pneumothorax which was cured spontaneaously. The patient was discharged on postoperative 14th day.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.78-80
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• 1995

We report the thoracoscopic resection of thymus and pericardial fat tissue in a patient who was in the setting of late severe myasthenia gravis[Osserman`s Group II-C-2 and previous tracheostomy state. The patient was 33-year-old female. She had been supported with mechanical ventilator for 88 days and suffered from recurrent pneumonia. Our first aim was to weaning her from mechanical ventilator. Traditional methods such as median sternotomy or transcervial thymectomy or transsternal sternotomy were difficult because of the anticipating complications of mediastinitis or morbidity, especially chest pain, following thoracotomy. We could wean her from the mechanical ventilator at postoperative 9 days. So, we concluded that video-assisted thoracoscopic thymectomy is a useful alternative tool in this case.