• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.44 no.4
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• pp.304-306
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• 2011

An azygos vein aneurysm is a very rare cause of a posterior mediastinal mass. Once the diagnosis has been confirmed, no treatment is usually required. However, the aneurysm can thrombose, and this may lead pulmonary thromboembolism, or the aneurysm may rupture. In these instances, the excision of the mass is recommended. Video-assisted thoracic surgery techniques have considerably improved. If it is necessary to remove the aneurysm, video-assisted thoracic surgery may be a good option for surgical treatment. We report a case of an aneurysm of the azygos arch that was successfully resected by video-assisted thoracic surgery.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.54 no.4
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• pp.258-262
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• 2021

Mediastinal lymph node dissection is an important part of lung cancer surgery that provides accurate nodal staging and may improve survival outcomes. The minimally invasive approach, such as video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) lobectomy for patients with non-small cell lung cancer, has become a standard operation worldwide. VATS mediastinal lymph node dissection should be thorough and accurate to ensure the completeness of lung cancer surgery. Herein, the author describes techniques for VATS mediastinal lymph node dissection.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.54 no.4
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• pp.310-313
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• 2021

There are several types of minimally invasive approaches for thymectomy, of which the transpleural approach by video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery is particularly useful. In this approach, thymectomy is performed from either side of the thoracic cage. Thoracic surgeons should be familiar with the principles of the procedure, the anatomy of the region, and surgical strategies for successful thymectomy. The details of transpleural thymectomy are discussed herein.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2011

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.54 no.4
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• pp.253-257
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• 2021

Video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) for lobectomy or segmentectomy is considered a favorable alternative to thoracotomy because of its usefulness and safety; it reduces postoperative pain, lowers morbidity, and shortens the hospital stay. However, despite these advantages of VATS, it has been difficult to perform VATS pneumonectomy due to the high morbidity and mortality rate of pneumonectomy. Recently, as VATS techniques have been developed and the usefulness of VATS pneumonectomy has continued to be reported, the frequency of VATS pneumonectomy is gradually increasing at large-volume centers. This article describes VATS pneumonectomy with a focus on the surgical technique.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.54 no.5
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• pp.433-435
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• 2021

Pleural adhesions are a major challenge in standard and nonintubated video-assisted thoracic surgery. The currently available imaging techniques help to assess the presence and extent of pleural adhesions, but do not provide information on tissue deformability, which is crucial for intraoperative management. In this report, we describe the utilization of real-time elastography mapping of pleural adhesions. This technique enabled us to detect areas with softer adhesions, and helped establish the surgical plan in a difficult case of a patient scheduled for nonintubated video-assisted thoracic surgery.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.54 no.4
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• pp.286-293
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• 2021

The extracorporeal anastomosis technique for video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) intrathoracic esophagogastric anastomosis is a convenient, easy technique to use in VATS esophagectomy. The surgeon can assess the viability and the status of the gastric conduit, and the introduction of a circular stapler can be easily done under direct vision extracorporeally, enabling easy and simple VATS intrathoracic anastomosis between the esophagus and the gastric conduit.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.46 no.4
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• pp.299-301
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• 2013

Video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS) is a minimally invasive technique that has many advantages in postoperative pain and recovery time. Because of its advantages, VATS is one of the surgical techniques widely used in patients with lung cancer. Most surgeons perform VATS for lung cancer with three or more incisions. As the technique of VATS has evolved, single-port VATS for lung cancer has been attempted and its advantages have been reported. We describe our experiences of VATS for lung cancer with a single incision in this report.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.54 no.4
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• pp.263-265
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• 2021

Intraoperative events can occur during video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) lobectomy due to unfavorable surgical anatomy, such as dense adhesions or calcifications around the pulmonary arteries. Troubleshooting intraoperative complications is essential for performing safe and successful VATS pulmonary resection and lymph node dissection. If continuous bleeding occurs or VATS does not proceed despite all measures, conversion to open thoracotomy should not be delayed.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.46 no.5
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• pp.388-390
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• 2013

With advancement of the technique of video-assisted thoracic surgery (VATS), some surgeons have made great efforts to reduce the number of incisions in the conventional three- or four-port approach. Several studies on cases treated by single-incision VATS and their short-term outcomes were reported. Here, we present our experience with single-incision VATS for the treatment of benign mediastinal diseases.