Lung surgery - Overview

Definition of Lung surgery:

Lung surgery is surgery to repair or remove lung tissue. Several common lung surgeries are:

• Lobectomy, to remove one or more lobes of a lung
• Wedge resection, to remove part of a lobe in a lung
• Pneumonectomy, to remove a lung
• Surgery to remove an infection or blood in the chest cavity
• Surgery to remove small balloon-like tissues (blebs) that cause lung collapse (pneumothorax)
• Biopsy of an unknown growth

A thoracotomy is a surgical cut that a surgeon makes to open the chest wall.

See also:

• Bronchoscopy
• Esophagectomy
• Lung biopsy
• Lung transplant

Description:

You will receive general anesthesia before surgery. You will be asleep and unable to feel pain. Two common ways to do surgery on your lungs are thoracotomy and video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS).

Lung surgery using a thoracotomy is called open surgery. In this surgery:

• You will lie on your side on an operating table. Your arm will be placed above your head.
• Your surgeon will make a surgical cut between two ribs. The cut will go from the front of your chest wall to your back, passing just underneath the armpit. These ribs will be separated.
• Your lung on this side will be deflated so that air will not move in and out of it during surgery. this makes it easier for the surgeon to operate on the lung.
• Your surgeon may not know how much of your lung needs to be removed until your chest is open and the lung can be seen.
• Your surgeon may also remove lymph nodes in this area.
• After surgery, one or more tubes will be placed into your chest area to drain out fluids that build up. These tubes are called chest tubes.
• After the surgery on your lungs, your surgeon will close the ribs, muscles, and skin with sutures.
• Open lung surgery may take from 2 to 6 hours.

Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery:

• Your surgeon will make several small surgical cuts over your chest wall. A videoscope (a tube with a tiny camera on the end) and other small tools will be passed through these cuts.
• Then, your surgeon may remove part or all of your lung, drain fluid or blood that has built up, or do other procedures.
• One or more tubes will be placed into your chest to drain out fluids that build up.

Why the Procedure Is Performed:

Thoracotomy or video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery may be done to:

• Remove cancer (such as lung cancer)
• Treat injuries that cause lung tissue to collapse (pneumothorax or hemothorax)
• Treat permanently collapsed lung tissue (atelectasis)
• Remove lung tissue that is diseased or damaged from emphysema or bronchiectasis
• Remove blood or blood clots (hemothorax)
• Remove tumors, such as solitary pulmonary nodule
• Inflate lung tissue that has collapsed because of disease or an accident
• Remove infection in the chest cavity
• Stop fluid buildup in the chest cavity (pleurodesis)
• Biopsy an unknown growth
• Remove a blood clot from the pulmonary artery (pulmonary embolism)

Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery can be used to treat many of these conditions. However, sometimes video surgery may not be possible, and the surgeon may have to switch to an open surgery.